Accidental Cantabile
by Winged-Violoncelle
Summary: Vocalise, clumsiness, and, above all, a broken cello. That was how it all accidentally started. Because of his cello, she was ruthlessly thrown into her most difficult dilemma of all time: are flowers larger than or equal to music? Shimizu/OC, Kaho/Len.
1. Vocalise: The Trigger

_I do not own La Corda d'Oro._

_Because the world needs more __**cello**__ and more Shimizu Keiichi, who continuously reminds me of my own cello buddy -.-.  
Previously titled __Infinity__. I was bored myself with the direction it was going in, so I changed the plot._

_**Summary:  
**__Vocalise, clumsiness and, above all, a broken cello. That was how it all accidentally started. Because of the untimely demise of the A string of his second favourite cello, she was ruthlessly thrown into her most difficult dilemma of all time: are flowers larger than or equal to music?_

_**Pairings:  
**__Shimizu Keiichi x OC, Tsukimori Len (for the moment) x Hino Kahoko x Others_

_**Initial Setting:  
**A round of concours that is not in the manga is being inserted by the authoress. The story begins a week before an imaginary _second_ round of concours, right after the group training camp in the Fuyuumi vacation home. Therefore, Tsukimori is not yet locked up in a closet in the upcoming round.  
__Read on and it would make sense, sort of._

_Please __**R&R**__! Concrits welcome! I'll give you cookies XD!_

* * *

**Bass Clef I – Vocalise: The Trigger**

There was something about that melody that lured her towards the source of it, aside from the fact that she knew it, and knew it well. The deep, firm timbre of the sound, adorned by the lushness of vibrato distinct to the magic of a cello, plucked a chord in her heart that resonated deeply into her soul. There seemed to be an invisible string that wrapped around her, leading her involuntarily forward, towards the source of the sound and the core of her musicality. Her footsteps echoed down the empty hallway, compatible with the gentle rhythm of the melody, but she failed to notice that. She merely searched with much serenity for the source of the music, with only one thought encircling her musically-intoxicated mind,

_I could listen to this forever._

When the volume of the melody increased, she knew that she was close. She made no note whatsoever of the many doors she had to open, because as she approached the music, her heart swelled. The musicality bottled inside of her began to suffocate her. She began to yearn for the luxury of expressing herself, with her own share of musical understanding, with the only gift of music she had – voice.

She pulled open one last door and knew that this was it. She was so close to the source of the sound that she didn't care about what, or who, it really was. She could only perceive the sunset that gracefully gilded the figure of the cellist, along with his blissfully closed eyes. His reverie was contagious, and she could no longer suppress her heart's desire.

She let her eyelids drop, and sang.

* * *

_Sergei Rachmaninoff, Vocalise._

* * *

No flamboyant ornaments. No lyrics. A simple melody. A voice and a cello.

It was enough for both of them.

At some obscure time which mattered not, the tip of his bow slid graciously off of the cello string, and the eyes of the musicians opened. They began to stare at each other, in curiosity, in wonder, in awe. The silence only broke when she asked, in her soft and melodic voice, with much incredulity,

"What is your name?"

He seemed not completely lucid, yet not utterly unaware.

"Shimizu Keiichi."

* * *

But she didn't expect them to meet again _this way_.

Nishihara Yui cursed herself with much spite, when she found herself clumsily sprawled over _his cello_, on which a string – yes, a lovely string of a heavenly cello – had _come off_. The peg attaching that string had blown out of the scroll of the cello the moment she had bestowed her weight – which was not much, but too much for a cello – ruthlessly onto the cello's general structure.

_His cello! _What had she done? She would rather much have knocked herself out than to have damaged a cellist's cello!

Despite great pain in her own flesh, as she had hurt herself in various places during that violent, clumsy fall, she jumped up as soon as she could. But the damage had already been done. The A string of the cello had been completely blown out and was dead past the point of no return.

_Oh God. I am totally fried now!_

She gulped and shuddered uncontrollably as she turned mechanically to look at him. He did not look amused. In fact, he was staring at her quite darkly. Yui repeatedly and silently berated herself for being such a blockhead. Tripping over the _floor tile_ – that has _got_ to be the stupidest thing she's done since she was five years old. And how did his _cello _manage to get caught in her fall? Why did she stumble into his practice room again, after so many months, when she thought she'd forgotten all about that encounter?

"Shimizu, I am _so_ sorry." She repressed herself from crumbing from the chills he was sending her with his eyes and bowed repeatedly, sweat dripping off of her brows. She did not want to antagonize _him_, of all people! There was something very special – at least to her – between them, and she'd always admired his music from afar for it.

* * *

_Sergei Rachmaninoff, Vocalise._

* * *

Keiichi looked at the Regular department intruder with the same impassive face. His eyes, however, were not very happy. Although he had another preferred carbon fibre cello at home, he did not fancy the idea of a wrecked A string on his still-very-much-liked one.

He heard her apology, but didn't seem to mark the sincerity in it. He merely opened his mouth and dictated flatly,

"You damaged my cello."

Yui gulped and sweated more. She never knew that the peaceful-looking "sleeping beauty" Shimizu Keiichi can be so intimidating. "Y-Yes, I know I damaged your cello. I'm _very_ sorry, Shimizu. I'll pay for whatever damage is done, even if I have to work five shifts a week in the Ling's Flower Shop for it. I think the owner will appreciate me more if I work more anyway… B-But that's not the point," she tensed more as she saw that Keiichi was not happy with her straying off topic, and continued to express how sorry she was, "I realize that the cello is very important to you, and I understand that a cellist is meant to value a cello more than his life, so I will do everything I could to compensate for the damage I have done – why, my mother is a cellist. I could get her to look at it if you want to. And I'll pay for the damage, I emphasize yet again - "

As she babbled on with a discomposed blush and continued to bow at each sentence, Keiichi finally got the idea that she was indeed very sorry. He sighed, and then yawned.

"Nishihara, right?"

"Y-yes."

"Your mother is a cellist?"

"Y-yes."

Utter silence.

Keiichi stared for the longest time at his broken cello with an airy sort of melancholy, even though he knew that it could be fixed in no time. It was a cellist thing. Nobody but a cellist could understand.

At last when he turned again to the culprit, he seemed to have noticed something else worth of noting.

"Nishihara, you're bleeding."

"What?" Yui mumbled confusedly as she looked down. It was then that a sharp pain in her right knee finally seemed to seize her, and she saw that blood had trickled all the way from her knee to the flawlessly clean floor of the practice room.

She turned inhumanly white as her voice became feeble all of a second, "Oh no… Shimizu, help… I have hemophobia!"

Keiichi seemed confused. "And that is…?"

"Fear of blood."

With these even feebler words, the poor girl tumbled down yet again, landing perfectly flat on her face, but subconsciously managing to direct herself away from Keiichi's cello.

Keiichi blinked numerous times and sighed.

As much as he wanted to turn his full attention to his instrument, he had to admit that the life of a fellow schoolmate – especially one that had once sung along with one of his favourite melodies – was perhaps just a _bit_ more important than his cello.

* * *

_A river would come in _real_ handy right now…_

Yui could not help but achieve loads of goosebumps as she was stared at, like some kind of an exhibition, by the pack of musical geniuses of Seisou. She could not remember how she got there – because she had fainted – and did not really _want_ to remember.

Nonetheless, she was obliged to remember. She'd broken Shimizu Keiichi's cello. She'd promised to pay for the damage. The A string had completely popped off and would probably take a few weeks to fix.

The next round of the Seisou concours is next week.

_Shoot._

She was even more devastated when she learned that Kanazawa-sensei had personally _carried_ her here to be _sentenced_ by the rest of the musicians, because, by the musicians' logic, if one of their fellow musicians is severely hindered by a cause during the concours, that cause shall be directly looked upon and blamed collectively.

"So, _you_ broke Shimizu's cello?" It was Hihara Kazuki who spoke first, looking more curious than offended. "Even though you _are_ from the Regular Department, you don't look like the other mean girls."

Yui shook her head fiercely, "It was totally _not_ on purpose. I mean, I tripped over a floor tile and - "

"Clumsy as ever, Yui-chan…" Yui was more than relieved to hear the voice of Hino Kahoko, her favourite senpai.

"Hino-chan, you know her?"

Kahoko shrugged, an embarrassed smile on the face, "Yeah. She's been quite clumsy ever since I knew her. I can vouch for her that she didn't do it on purpose."

Yunoki Azuma smiled his ever-so-refreshing smile on the side, "I see. But that does not signify that she may be easily forgiven for devastating Shimizu and his musicality."

"She should hardly be forgiven at all." The voice of Tsukimori Len sent multiple chills down the poor clumsy girl's spine, "To have taken the instrument of another so lightly as to trip carelessly and _land_ on it, in my opinion, is as much a sin as breaking the instrument on purpose."

Yui cried herself a river. Tsukimori-senpai is as ruthless as ever!

Kahoko scowled and protested, "Gee, Tsukimori-kun, it's not like she could _control_ where she'd fall. I mean, sure, she had done something terrible to Shimizu-kun, but look at how badly she'd hurt herself!" She pointed with much sympathy at Yui's bandaged knee and the bruise on her head. "I don't think she deserves _that_ much of a death sentence."

She smiled as Yui sent her a teary thanks. Fuyuumi Shouko received the same teary thanks after she expressed her shy agreement with Kahoko.

Len seemed impassive. "Physical wounds can heal easily. And she doesn't play an instrument, does she? Perhaps she is not aware that Shimizu's cello, even when fixed, will give off a different feel and hinder his performance."

"…You're making me feel even worse than I did when I realized I had landed on his cello, Tsukimori-senpai…"

"All the more reason for you to willingly accept your punishment without further excuses."

Tsuchiura Ryoutarou cut off his enemy impatiently and shot him a glare, "Rather than being a _snob_ like always, Tsukimori, why don't we let Shimizu decide this? He's the one who should be giving the sentence after all."

The group cast their eyes towards the cellist, and when they saw that he was _asleep_, they (with the exception of Azuma) flipped in unison. To think they had thought that he valued the wellbeing of his cello that at least he would not _fall asleep_ when the cause of his cello's demise was being sentenced!

"Forget it," Ryoutarou groggily stood up and addressed Kanazawa, "Let's just let Kanayan decide this."

Kanazawa stared penetratingly into the poor Yui's eyes, causing the latter to shiver uncontrollably. She had never been a favourite of his, as she continuously fell asleep in his music class whenever he talked about theory. He would most definitely _not_ let her off easy.

She was right.

"Nishihara, you will now be my full-time helper with all the details of the concours. You are to come to _all_ the contestant gatherings and keep track of _all_ their selections of music, take care of _all_ the advertisements and decorations, try to catch most of their rehearsals and report to me their progress, et cetera. Your primary job is to stick around with the concours participants and comply with their needs. Understand?"

"What!" The poor girl exclaimed so loudly that she woke Keiichi. "That's, like, the job of a stalker and the most strenuous job I could ever think of! You just wanna make _me_ do that so _you_ can slack off, am I right? That is so - "

Her complaint was cut short by Kahoko's kind whispering of a reminder, "Yui-chan, it could've been much worse. Besides, he might add more chores if you complain more!"

The poor girl realized how right her senpai was and immediately shut up.

"I see that you understand," Kanazawa nodded briefly and turned to the group, "Is that sentence sufficient for her or does anyone else have anything to add?"

Kazuki bounced happily and declared that he would be happy to "report stuff" to Nishihara-chan. Shouko nodded continuously in accordance with Kazuki's response. Azuma smiled and made no objections. Ryoutarou shrugged. Len was about to protest, when the overly teary eyes of Yui and the fuming ones of Kahoko made him unwillingly relinquish his argument. Keiichi, as expected, fell asleep once more.

So Nishihara Yui was to embrace her fate and accept the fact that she would be inevitably connected to the Seisou concours – to music.

She would no longer be able to head-on avoid it.

* * *

Yui glanced sheepishly at Keiichi, who was walking in front of her, and held tighter onto the strap of the cello case. She had insisted that she take his cello home and let her mother inspect it. She'd told him that her mother was quite skilled when it came to repairing the instrument. He seemed to not object, but insisted on walking with his cello and see with his own eyes that it arrives _safely_ at the Nishihara resident.

_He'll _never_ trust me again…_ The poor girl lamented as she secured the cello case on her shoulder even more.

Her lament was soon forgotten about when she saw that he was about to cross the road when the light was still red. She hastened to restrain him, and urged him to be more careful.

He made no response for a while, and when at last he said something, it was not at all what Yui had expected.

"You know, I haven't personally punished you."

_What!_ Yui tensed considerably and gripped the cello case strap so hard that her fingers hurt. "Shimizu, I said I'm _extremely sorry_! I swear that I'll pay back the damage even if I die of fatigue working in the flower shop! Please don't hold a grudge against me – I'll do _anything_ you ask, as long as it's within my range of reason."

Keiichi seemed abnormally lucid, and it intimidated her. "Anything?"

She gulped. "Anything."

"All right. Then I'm going to ask you a few questions, and you must answer me truthfully."

Yui waited for the questions, and when she heard the first one, she froze.

"Nishihara, you sing, right?"

There came the question she feared more than she did blood.

* * *

_If you would like a continuation, please leave me a __**review**__ XD! Reviews are a big part of my motivation XD. Some suggestions on who Kaho should end up with would be nice too… ;D I really do like them most equally well._


	2. Ave Maria: The Relapse

_Thank you to __Anime-Kunoichi__ for the support! Now, without further ado, let's dive into the second chapter. The eccentricity of the fic is going to be preserved ;D. Please __**review **__:P!_

* * *

**Bass Clef II – Ave Maria: The Relapse**

"You look happier today, Yui-chan!" Kahoko remarked, after she had saluted the kouhai whom she had seen on her way to school.

Yui smiled at the remark and shrugged, "Certainly, because I have lessened a cumbersome burden a little."

"A burden? I thought your burden was increased when you broke Shimizu-kun's cello yesterday…" Kahoko raised an eyebrow and pointed out dubiously, "How much is the damage anyway?"

Yui's good mood immediately withered upon being reminded of her stupidity of the day before, as well as the vast damage she had done to Keiichi's precious cello. "Well, as expected, his cello is quite an antique; my mother nearly killed me when she learned that _I _was the one who had damaged it. Gee, those cellists. Anyway, my mother took it to her friend, who works in the renowned _Bass Clef Instrumentals_ downtown. She estimated that to replace the A string and readjust the bridge, which had been also knocked out of place a little, it would cost about 100,000 yen…"

"What!" Kahoko exclaimed, "And _you_ are going to pay for it?"

"Yeah... My mom is so mad at me that she won't pay a penny. She said that _I _would have to settle this. The sad thing is that I used up _all_ of my allowances last week buying myself a laptop which I really needed, so I'll have to start making money from scratch… But if I work six shifts a week in the flower shop, I can probably pay it back in four to five weeks…"

"…Wow. Good luck, Yui-chan. You're not going to have any allowances for a while."

"As if I ever had much. Anyway, as I am destined to die of fatigue, I don't really care anymore about myself; but I'm worried about Shimizu. I know that he has another cello, but hasn't he been doing all his practicing for the concours on this one?"

Kahoko blinked, "Probably. But would a different cello really make that much of a difference?"

Yui twitched uncomfortably and stared, "Gee, Kaho-senpai, that's coming from _you_? I don't even play an instrument and I know that sudden switches of instruments really affects one's playing. And you play the violin!" Then, something seized her as she paused on her path and presented a dubious scowl, "…Come to think of it, when did you start? I don't remember meeting you years ago knowing that you had played the violin."

"Oh, um," Kahoko scratched her head sheepishly and searched frantically for a suitable reply. Luckily, she found one. "Well then, Yui-chan, I have a question for _you_ too. If your mother is a cellist and your father is a flautist, why do _you_ not play an instrument?"

The girls stared at each other for the longest time, before bursting out laughing simultaneously, knowing that they had each hit a sweet, sore spot.

"All right then, let's both keep our secrets until we're ready to tell each other."

It was then that they had arrived in front of the school gate and were joined by the voice of the always smiling Azuma.

"You ladies there seem awfully amused. It is always nice to start off the day with good humour. Good morning."

"Good morning, Yunoki-senpai." Yui nodded politely and returned a smile. Kahoko was visibly shaken by Azuma's presence, as she proceeded to cling to Yui's shoulders. Unfortunately, her kouhai was not the most understanding type, as she merely asked bluntly, "…Um, Kaho-senpai, something wrong? Your hands are awfully cold."

Kahoko stiffened and gulped, before denying fervently, "Nonono, nothing is wrong."

Azuma's smile seemed to widen. "Really? Are you sure that you have not caught a cold, Hino-chan?"

"No, I am perfectly fine, thank you. I'll be off to class now!" Kahoko babbled indignantly and rushed off to her own classroom. Yui stared after her in bafflement and shrugged.

"Come to think of it, Yunoki-senpai, Kaho-senpai has been awfully afraid of you during the last few weeks."

She did not notice a quick frown that clouded Azuma's face for a mere second. "Oh? You really think so?"

"…I'm probably just imagining things. I can't imagine why anyone would be afraid of _you_, of all people."

Azuma chuckled. "I'll take that as a compliment. So have you yet figured out how to compensate for Shimizu's cello?"

Yui turned blue at being _again_ reminded of her stupidity. "The only thing I could do was to take his cello to repair and pay for it… but I don't know if he'll be affected in the concours."

"Mind if I give you some suggestions?"

Yui lit up at the thought of a suggestion from the nicest senpai she's ever known. "Not at all! I would _love_ a suggestion. Anything to show Shimizu that I'm _really_ sorry."

She looked with much anticipation at Azuma's face, noticing that it was covered by a smile that seemed deeper than usual.

"Be his audience. Enjoy the music with him. Sing along if you feel like it. He'll get used to a different instrument more easily if he has someone to enjoy it with."

A pause. A shudder.

_What kind of a suggestion is that?_ Yui questioned herself, cold sweat dripping from her brows. _Why does he seem like he knows more than he's telling me?_

For a split second, she seemed to understand why Kaho-senpai was afraid of him.

"Earth to Nishihara-chan!" Azuma's amused call pulled her back to reality with a jerk. "I merely suggested what I thought would be most logical. You certainly do not have to follow it."

"No, it was a very logical suggestion indeed," Yui mumbled to herself and sighed inwardly.

_It cannot be helped._

"Thank you very much for the suggestion, Yunoki-senpai. I'll see what I can do."

"My pleasure. Well then, shall we be off to our classes too?"

"We shall indeed."

* * *

For the entire day, Azuma's suggestion echoed in Yui's mind and greatly vexed her.

She _knew_ it was a bad idea to enroll in Seisou! Even though she enrolled in the Regular Department, it was impossible to escape the music! It was only the third month of school and she had already shared her secret with a music student. Apparently God thought that it was not bad enough and had made another student creep her out with his _deep_ smile! In addition, it seemed as if she could no longer avoid music no matter how hard she tried.

But she didn't mind sharing her secret with Keiichi. She acknowledged that. Because for one thing, he didn't really seem like he had understood. And because of that, she was assured that he would fall asleep before he'd even think of telling another human being. In addition, there was something _comforting_, knowing that she had shared more than one more special moments with the drowsy airhead.

Not that she knew just what exactly it was, but.

It was all too confusing for her to think of.

Alas, school was over. When Yui walked out of her classroom, beat and declaring to her friend that geography is a disaster, her ears picked up the sound of the cello. It was a bit different, but it was _the_ cello nonetheless.

Not that there weren't sounds of any other instruments around. She'd always picked out the cello first, for some reason.

Her heart skipped a beat as she recognized the melody. It was so familiar, so soft, and so rich in tone that she could not help but stare towards the direction of the sound. There was no mistake – the melody was calling out to her, speaking to the most profound desires of her heart, drawing out her scattered strands of musicality. It was a magnet. It was the north pole, and her susceptible love for music was the south. No matter how far away she wanted to stay from it, it could not be helped. Her efforts to block out the sound – to block out music – was, and always had been, futile.

She wanted to sing.

Amidst confused questions of her peers, she sped off towards the source of the sound. _I guess I'll just say that I was following Yunoki-senpai's advice. Just this once. This will be the last time._

She pulled open the door of that same practice room she had entered on the first day of school, and spotted the same figure she had spotted, his soft-hued cello replaced by a blue, carbon fibre one.

His eyes were open this time. They only closed when they saw her.

She smiled, and then sang.

* * *

_Franz Schubert, Ave Maria._

* * *

"Why are you here?" Keiichi asked drowsily as the last note of the song had ceased to echo. Yui thought she saw a sly glint dance briefly in his green eyes. She shook her head and knew that she was probably imagining things, but it didn't stop her from scowling.

"What do you mean why am I here? Why are _you_ playing songs all of a sudden, when I distinctly remember that you've been playing cello concertos, Bach suites and etudes since the second day of school?"

Keiichi blinked in confusion, "But it's the only music I happen to have…"

Yui seated herself on the closest piano bench and sighed, staring perplexedly into the soft colours of his cello, wondering how much he cared for her affairs without knowing why. "Look, I know that I've told you a secret – and a very _big_ secret at that – but please don't take advantage of my Achille's heel now that you know about it, okay?"

She stared earnestly at his face for a reply, but he, however, seemed plain confused. Not long passed before Yui was certain that he really didn't remember. Such an idea was reinforced when he tilted his head with much bafflement and asked lazily, after a very long silence, "…What are you talking about?"

"…Never mind."

Another pause.

"So are you leaving?"

Yui's temper flared. What sort of a question is that? Her head snapped up, and her eyes met his clueless ones. Her anger left in an instant, when she realized that he had meant no harm. After all, he was just… him.

She thought about Azuma's advice.

"No."

Keiichi blinked and watched his fellow schoolmate slouch over the closed grand piano, an evident expression of defeat on the face as she continued to utter her reply, with a flat voice that failed to match a strangely melancholic glint in her chocolate eyes.

"I'm going to be your audience, enjoy your music with you, and sing along if I can, in hopes that you'll be able to enjoy playing what you've been playing on the other cello on this one, so that you can succeed in the concours next week."

Because of her lazy position over the piano, she missed a small smile gathering at his lips.

"If you insist."

He positioned the frog of his bow at the A string of his blue cello, before something else caught his eyes. "…Nishihara, why are you hugging the piano in such a fashion, like it's the only piece of wood in a vast ocean you're trapped in?"

"I can't afford to fall again, can I?"

"…"

* * *

"Everyone! Did any of you happen to hear that _voice _yesterday?"

Yui tensed considerably as she heard Kazuki burst out the question during the middle of a concours contestant gathering. She looked around hastily and was relieved that nobody was watching her. Instead, everyone was focused on Kazuki's monologue. "It was a very beautiful voice! I think it was singing along with Shimizu's cello. I was practicing my trumpet when I heard it! It worked perfectly well! I never thought that a soprano voice could blend in so perfectly with a cello, but I guess I was wrong! So did anyone else hear it?"

"I heard it," Kahoko smiled at the recollection, "I was practicing on the roof."

Shouko blushed, "Umm, I heard it too. I was in the music room practicing for the concours."

"I heard it as well," Ryoutarou and Len commented simultaneously, before glaring and each other and deciding to remain silent.

Azuma's smile told everyone that clearly he had also heard it. "Nishihara-chan, what about you?"

Yui gulped and tried to not sound as sheepish as she felt, "Yep, heard it."

"Cool, so everyone heard it!" Kazuki beamed in an upbeat manner and bounced around happily, "I wonder who it was?"

Azuma glanced briefly at Yui, before smiling and shrugging, "I say that it's certainly someone we know. If the voice is acquainted with Shimizu, we definitely know the owner of it."

Yui wished she could just disappear.

Kazuki scowled dubiously, "Are you implying that Shimizu has no friends except for us or something?"

"No, I certainly do not mean that. I'm just saying. It's someone we know, that's all."

The green-haired boy shrugged, before he beamed again due to an idea that had just seized him "Let's hassle him! He must tell us who it is."

Yui watched with horror as Kazuki proceeded to grab poor Keiichi, who was sleeping peacefully on the side, and shake him like he was a slim tree full of ripe apples. Her horror turned into utter terror when she saw that he did not wake up, despite Kazuki's great strength, which one is well acquainted with. When a blue Kahoko ordered him to stop before poor Keiichi dies in his sleep, Kazuki sighed and mumbled dubiously before retreating, "I think Shimizu needs to go see a doctor if he wouldn't wake up after _that_ much shaking…"

"He _should_ go see a doctor nonetheless for sleeping so much…" Yui mumbled to herself, before she caught a movement in the eyelashes of the cellist and realized that he was in fact awake.

_Oh, Shimizu, you're more coyly than I thought! _She turned away from the contestants of the concours to hide a small smile. _I'll have to personally thank you later!_

The clique waited a bit more in vain for the late Kanazawa-sensei to appear. They soon became bored, and Kazuki, for lack of better topics, returned to the subject of the voice with an upbeat declaration, "I think we should give that voice a name."

Len sighed with much disdain, "Hihara-senpai, I agree that the voice was a soothing one, but there is no need to give it a _name_."

"But why not? We don't know whose voice it is. Giving it a name will bring some mysterious touches!" Kazuki's eyes danced with an I-want-adventure sort of light, and declared amidst the bored stares of his fellow musicians, "I think it should be called '**The Phantom Voice of Seisou Academy**'!"

CLUNK

The group cast their eyes in unison to the source of the blunt sound, only to find that it was Yui, who was now looking perfectly dead, the head residing peacefully on the nearest desk around her. Being the warmhearted senpai as always, Kazuki rushed with much worry to his kouhai's side and bombarded her with concerned questions, "What's wrong, Nishihara-chan? Did something hit you? Did you get sick all of a sudden? Did you eat something rotten in the morning?"

Yui slowly raised her head with a distorted smile on the face, looking almost exactly like a crying baboon, "…I am perfectly fine, thank you, Hihara-senpai."

A Phantom Voice? That has _got_ to be the weirdest and stupidest nickname that she had _ever_ been given.

She was saved from more questioning by Kanazawa, who entered the room with an apologetic grin on the face, "Sorry, I had been talking to an old acquaintance." When he saw that the clique was staring at him with rather murderous impressions, he immediately cut into business, "Anyway, the sole purpose of this meeting is to inform you of the theme of next week's concours."

Yui took the trouble to personally shake Keiichi, who had again fallen asleep, awake.

"The theme next week will be 'hidden desires'."

* * *

_Hope you liked it! Please leave a __**review**__, and if you have a suggestion as to who Kaho should pair up with, don't hesitate to tell me in the review ;D. For the moment, I'm sticking with Len._


	3. Violin Concerto: The First Choices

_Alas, I come with the 3__rd__ chapter. Bear hugs and chocolates for my lovely beta-sama, __**sAppHiRa-hiMe**__! My stupid mistakes must have gotten on your nerves XD. Thanks so much for bearing with me!_

_This story will jump around a bit, so make sure you read everything ;D!  
__  
And thank you to __Anime-Kunoichi__, __Nerizu__, __cortin__, __poakkis__, and __Sweet Nightmare's Good Byes__ for your lovely reviews! You brightened my days with your support. Now enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

**Bass Clef III – Violin Concerto: The First Choices**

Lili blinked with surprise, "Hidden desires? That's an odd one."

Hino Kahoko sighed with exasperation, "If even _you_ say that, then I'm _doomed_."

"Oh come _on_!" The Fata snorted and shrugged nonchalantly, "I'm just saying that they wouldn't usually tackle a personal theme like that. You, though, are gonna breeze through without much problem, as _long_ as you enjoy the music!"

"Of course I can enjoy the music if I know _how_ to enjoy it and _what_ exactly to enjoy!" Kahoko gritted her teeth and trembled, "For the past weeks I've been practicing concertos and etudes, which, nice as they are, totally do _not_ represent my inner desires."

Certainly. How would a simple melody, say, Aria Op 3, which probably sounds just like any other aria, bring about her inner desires and show them to the audience? She would have to play something _meaningful_, something with more depth, something that is not _just an aria_, or _just a piece of music_ for that matter.

Lili sighed, "You are troublesome sometimes, Hino Kahoko! You know that you could just pick a piece you really like and argue that it represents an inner desire of feeling the delicacy of golden music! Through your magic violin you will feel the essence of the hues of the lovely notes, and fill your heart with the sentiments of overwhelming joy…- "

Kahoko watched with raised eyebrows as the fairy began to float further away into its own reverie, with its large eyes glittering with the joy that it had just talked of. She decided to stop its monologue before eternity passed, and cleared her throat with a frown, "But Lili, it has to be a _special_ one. It can't just be anything. I want it to have something that I can _relate_ to myself! There's nothing to relate to when the piece I'm playing is called Etude No. 6 or whatever. It should at least have a _name_!"

Lili pouted and prepared to fire back, but paused upon hearing a melody.

Elegant. Passionate. Adorned with elaborate and fast octave jumps, and occasionally filled with playfulness.

Kahoko listened. A short spark of incredulity glinted inside her, but it was soon replaced by a heartfelt connection to the distinct sound of the expressive violin.

* * *

_Felix Mendelssohn, Violin Concerto in E Minor_.

* * *

She smiled and closed her eyes, savouring the tone, the complex rhythms, and the ups and downs of the piece's musical nature. She did not notice an understanding smile on Lili's face as it slipped out of her world. Soon she found herself walking involuntarily to seek out the source of the music, to be up close with the sound – to heartily enjoy it to the maximum extent.

She pulled open the door of the practice room and smiled more. She stood still and closed her eyes while her body relaxed, and listened only to the mesmerizing melody.

It was certainly the first time she had heard Tsukimori Len play such a lively piece of music, with such a display of virtuoso.

* * *

Kazuki walked along the path with a sigh. "Hidden desires"! Such an ambiguous and personal theme! How was he supposed to pick the right music with his instrument being a _trumpet_? Were there any trumpet pieces dedicated to _food_? Were there any trumpet pieces dedicated to basketball? Were there any trumpet pieces dedicated to _anything fun_, for that matter? Arrgh, what was he going to choose?

Yep, Hihara Kazuki was in trouble.

Whenever Hihara Kazuki was in trouble, he looked around for possibly fun hangouts to take his mind off of unpleasant happenings. A bar was out of the question. Cosmetics… he'll pass. Private residents were probably not the best places to barge into. A flower shop –

Parfait.

Kazuki thought that buying some flowers would be a perfect way to waste some time and temporarily take his thoughts off of his troubles. Besides, flowers could do more than that. They could be put into his room and provide some soothing decoration for a while, or they could be given to some of his friends.

Like Hino-chan in the lower grade.

Kazuki blushed and pushed open the door of the flower shop, noticing the lovely tinkles of a chime.

A comforting scent flowed its way into his nostrils, and he smiled at the arrangement of the shop. It was as small and cozy as it had looked from the outside. In fact, it was such a small shop that one would've missed it had one not been looking carefully. Almost every corner of the room was covered by flowers, which were sorted by their colours, transforming the limited space into a completely different world on its own. Kazuki stared with incredulity, only to snap out of his reverie when a soft and melodic voice called out to him from a desk at the smallest corner,

"Welcome!"

Kazuki turned to meet the eyes of presumably the shop owner, only to drop his jaw when he recognized the face.

"Nishihara-chan?"

"Hihara-senpai?" Yui blinked repeatedly as she too recognized her friendly upperclassman. "What made you feel like buying flowers?"

Kazuki turned red and chuckled sheepishly, "Hahaha, boredom. And you, you work here?"

"Yep. I coaxed the owner, Mr. Ling, into letting me. I love the atmosphere here, and he was needing a hand quite badly."

"I agree that it's indeed a nice atmosphere! But school just ended, like, half an hour ago, and you're already here in a totally different outfit _working_?"

Yui sighed, "I have 100,000 yen to pay to Shimizu and I have _no _allowances left. What do _you_ expect me to do, Hihara-senpai?"

Kazuki declared that poor Nishihara-chan was the most unfortunate soul in the entire world. Yui readily agreed.

"You came to buy flowers, right? I can tell you that we have many types of exotic flowers lying around. What kind of flowers are you looking for?"

Kazuki put an index finger at his chin and smooched his face with a pensive pout, as if he were being bothered by the greatest dilemma of all time. "Hmm… what kind, eh? I don't know… what kind of flowers would Hino-chan like…?"

"Hino-chan?" Yui blinked, before the look of _I-am-Columbus-and-I-have-found-a-new-land!_ seized her, causing her to smirk from ear to ear, "You can't mean Kaho-senpai, can you? You're buying flowers for Kaho-senpai?"

"Wha?" The poor Kazuki turned red to the neck and shuddered as Yui inched closer with her smirk replaced by a wolfish grin. "W-Wait, Nishihara-chan, did I just say that out loud?"

"You bet you did, Hihara-senpai! So you have a thing for Kaho-senpai, eh? That's a first – she hasn't had anybody have a thing for her since I have known her!"

Of course, Yui would later be surprised to find that there were, in fact, _many_ people who had _a thing_ for Hino Kahoko.

Kazuki was redder than a beet, "Gee, Nishihara-chan, don't put it so… creepily! _Thing_? That sounds so…"

Yui ignored him and began to show him around the small flower shop with a newfound _extreme_ enthusiasm, and with a grin that really alarmed her poor senpai, "You must be aware, Hihara-senpai, that these roses came in today and were trimmed by the prominent Mr. Ling merely this morning – but roses are too clichéd, of course. You must present Kaho-senpai with something _exotic_."

She paused to categorize all the flowers she knew as "exotic", and when Kazuki saw her grin widening, he could not help but gulp. He could almost _feel_ an imminent monologue.

"I would recommend blue roses if we had any in stock, but they sold out last weekend, and the next bunch would not arrive until tomorrow. Something elegant to give to your ideal girl, especially one like Kaho-senpai, would be lily of the valley, as its white, bell-shaped flowers may infuse the air with fragrance throughout the day and refresh your love. Similarly, the calla lily may represent chastity and devotion, and as it is trumpet-shaped, it may readily remind Kaho-senpai of you. If, instead, you want something flamboyant, I recommend some Dutch amaryllis. They are very bright in colours and are great for decorations. And - "

"Whoa, whoa, slow down!" Kazuki massaged his forehead in confusion, "So… the calla lily is the red one over here and infuses the air with fragrance?"

"No!" Yui shook her head hopelessly, "Senpai, you should go read a plant encyclopedia."

"EWW! Why in the right mind would I wanna read an _encyclopedia_?"

"… If you wave your arms any more, senpai, you'll look like an octopus, or maybe more like Davy Jones' face. Moving on, if you want to give Kaho-senpai something _really_ exotic," She grinned as she pointed at the oddest-looking pot of flowers in the entire room, "Give her some birds of paradise. In this region, they are _only _on sale in the Ling's Flower Shop, and this week they are on a special offer."

Kazuki looked with much horror at the irregular spikes of the plant, and was quick in declaring that though the flower was unique, he would rather buy it another day.

With another good fifteen minutes of scanning around, Kazuki finally decided on a lovely pot of hyacinth. As Yui wrapped up the flower into a gift package with utter care, something seized the trumpeter as he asked with curiosity, "Nishihara-chan, you really know and love these flowers, don't you?"

Yui's almost instant smile easily gave her away, "Of course. My innermost desire is to become a florist – such is one of the reasons I train myself working in this flower shop. Speaking of which, Hihara-senpai, have you decided on your 'hidden desire' piece for the concours yet? The deadline is two days from now and I'll need it from you soon."

Kazuki remembered his trouble from earlier, and sighed. "No. I mean come on, _hidden desires_? I don't have any_ hidden_ desires. My desires are pretty open – fun, food, and stuffs of the sort. And there aren't any trumpet solos dedicated to ice-cream, are there?"

"Pfft," Yui laughed at the thought of an Ice-cream Trumpet Concerto. "If you can't find anything, compose one! Hihara Kazuki can be the first person in the world to compose a concerto dedicated to ice-cream!"

"You say it like it's easy to compose!"

"…I was kidding, Hihara-senpai."

Silence ensued as Yui handed her senpai the flower. Both of them dwelled too much on the matter of the trumpet solo to talk, and the silence lasted for an _astonishing_ two minutes.

"I know!" Yui's infamous evil grin returned, causing Kazuki to shudder. "You like Kaho-senpai, right?"

"Gee, just because you know about it doesn't give you the right to rub it in my face!"

"I'm just trying to _help_, Hihara-senpai! Why don't you try one of the many _Romances_ that are out there, you know? Like Faure's or Mendelssohn's _Romance sans Paroles_, or Shostakovich's _Romance_ from The Gadfly, or Tchaikovsky's _Romance in F minor_?"

"But Nishihara-chan, they're all written for violins or pianos!"

"That's where your trumpet musicality comes in! You should, like, just rearrange them a bit to make them sound jazzy! _Yeah!_ You should get to it now! The Tchaikovsky one would be _perfect_ to add some jazz to it. Then you can express your hidden love for Kaho-senpai in your music _and_ be unique!"

Kazuki could've flipped at the last sentence, "…Nishihara-chan, you sound somewhat like an otaku who reads too much shoujo manga…"

"…Well _thanks_, Hihara-senpai."

"But it's not a bad idea! Tchaikovsky's _Romance in F minor_ might actually sound pretty cool if I add some jazziness to it! I like the suggestion, Nishihara-chan."

Somewhat surprised at her crippled idea being actually approved, Yui gave a somewhat smug smile, "_See_? My ideas are always helpful."

"Then I'll get to it. Thanks for helping with the flowers, Nishihara-chan!"

"My pleasure. I would always enjoy being a matchmaker. Invite me to your wedding!"

"Good God, Nishihara-chan, you really _do_ read too much shoujo manga."

* * *

Len let the tip of his bow slide gently off of his string. He let out a tired sigh. To run through the famed Mendelssohn concerto was definitely energy-consuming – it was not an easy piece to play. He took a moment to massage his pained shoulder, and looked out to see that it was quite late. He sighed again and turned, preparing to go home.

He froze as he found Kahoko standing at the door. "…What are you doing here?"

Kahoko twitched as he stared, and attempted with no success to come up with an explanation. The best she could do was utter gibberish and incoherent stutters. It was not until after at least five minutes of such awkwardness that Kahoko was able to speak human, "…So yeah, I was here because I loved the sound of the music. What piece is this?"

Len gave a chilling glare, "I am surprised, Hino, that you do not know the name of one of the most performed violin concertos of all time. It was the reputed Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E Minor."

"Oh, um," Kahoko laughed nervously and shrugged it off, "I'm not really good with stuff like memorizing names of concertos…"

Len frowned. "That is not an excuse. A violinist must be acquainted with the name of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. It is the one concerto that a violinist must play in order to be admitted as a professional."

"Oh." Kahoko's response was blunt, and when she saw that Len's frown deepened, she hastened to change the topic, "So you're going to play that in the concours?"

"Yes, with a piano arrangement, as to ask for the orchestra club to accompany me seems impractical."

Kahoko nodded and seemed as if she understood, "I see." Then, a thought seized her as a smile made its way to her lips, "So your innermost desire is to become a professional?"

"…Is that not obvious?"

"…Well, yeah, it's obvious. But the theme is 'hidden desires', isn't it? Shouldn't you choose something that's, like, _less_ obvious?"

Len gave her a cold glance and looked away, voice sounding flat as ever, "I don't have any other desires. I would like to become a professional violinist and it is my only dream."

Kahoko laughed nervously, at the same time inwardly wondering if he could've put it a bit less bluntly. When she spoke again, she began wondering if she were herself, because for some reason, she really intended to express her own opinions to this guy, even if she knew that he probably wouldn't understand.

"Unlike you, I don't want to become a professional."

Such a lighthearted brush over his lifelong dream irritated Len and gave him a sudden urge to snap, but when he saw her naïve smile he could not. Instead, he heaved a sigh and asked,

"Then why exactly do you play the violin, if you do not intend to pursue it? You do realize that participating in the concours signifies that you will generally be expected to take the direction of professionalism."

Kahoko scratched her head and tried to reply. It almost slipped that she was "forced into it", but remembering Len's seriousness and love for the instrument, she swallowed the words. Len watched with decreasing patience as she continuously mumbled to herself in attempt to utter a suitable response. When one came, she was amazed by its simultaneous intricacy and simplicity.

"I don't know. I guess I play the violin… to play the violin."

It was the best one that Hino Kahoko could manage – at least for the moment.

Perhaps neither of them had really understood such a statement just then. It was so blunt, so understandable, yet so incomprehensible that both of them stood still in silence and contemplated its meaning for what seemed like the longest time. At somewhat of an obscure moment during the stillness, their eyes met, and for an odd moment, both felt an untouched chord in their hearts, beginning to be plucked by an unknown source which they never knew existed in them.

_What do you call this…?_

They looked away, and more silence ensued. She seemed to have found new interest in the patterns on the floor tiles, and he desired more than ever to get back to his violin. At last, in an attempt to lessen the awkwardness, Len asked with a clear of his throat, "What is your piece?"

"Oh? I haven't yet picked one," Kahoko confessed, scratching her head sheepishly, before her trademark smile returned to her lips. "But I think due to our earlier conversation, I have figured out the type of music I might choose."

"And what may that be?"

"Because music does not need a name to be special – its name won't be flamboyant."

* * *

"Hmm."

Yui dragged herself lazily down the path as she scanned over the contents on her notebook. Her results of repeatedly stalking the musicians had finally come to a conclusion.

Hihara Kazuki was going to play _Romance in F Minor_ by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Yui couldn't believe he was actually going to do it.

Yunoki Azuma was going to play Edward Elgar's _Chanson de Matin_, and Tsuchiura Ryoutarou, Frederic Chopin's _Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2_. Yui thought it interesting that morning and night shall intertwine during the concours.

Tsukimori Len was going to tackle Felix Mendelssohn's _Violin Concerto in E Minor_, and Yui thought it was a really bold choice.

Hino Kahoko would be playing Chopin's _Sonata Op. 65_. Yui wondered what sort of a hidden desire that represented; she decided that she was going to hassle her senpai for it.

And last but not least, Fuyuumi Shouko, _Clarinet Sonata Op. 120, No. 2 in E flat_, Johannes Brahms. How was Yui ever going to gain insight into her inner desires? Yui thought that Shouko ought to open up more.

As Yui continued down her path, her schoolbag on her shoulder felt heavier by the minute. She massaged her strained shoulder and sighed with exasperation, hoping that her stress would be eased by some constant remarking to herself, "We need more contemporary pieces… Too many classical and romantic composers. Something like _Flight of the Bumblebee_ might be fun to hear… hey, why is it that I haven't gotten Shimizu's piece yet…?"

As the thought seized her while she was passing a foot over the main gate of the school, she was forced to pause drastically and look back, knowing that her duty has yet to be finished.

"Uhh, rats?"

She groaned as she turned back and sprinted towards the building of the Music Department. Unbeknownst to her, had she begun running simply a _tad_ later, she would've been entangled in a very troublesome event concerning poor Fuyuumi Shouko.

* * *

_So a __**review**__ would be really nice now, no?_


	4. Song without Words: The Second Choices

_Salute! Sorry for the epically long wait! I've been deathly busy with school for the longest time ". But alas, I'm determined to write more, because the world needs more **cello**! :)_

_Thank you so much to Sweet Nightmare's Good Byes, Anime-Kunoichi, lilypop8, Madallon, and Arsenous Elation for reviewing and putting up with my lack of updates. I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

_And no, it's not exactly bullying that saddens Shouko ;D._

* * *

**Bass Clef IV – Song without Words: The Second Choices**

Shouko's head hurt. A lot.

Anyone's head would hurt a lot if it were smacked perfectly on the top by a well-inflated soccer ball.

So yeah, Shouko's head hurt. A lot.

Because Shouko's head hurt a lot, tears began streaming down her face. Fuyuumi Shouko cannot stand pain. When Fuyuumi Shouko is in pain, the only way she could relieve herself is to cry.

A faint voice cried from the direction that the culprit soccer ball came from, clearly taking pleasure in others' misfortunes, "Look what you've done, Tsuchiura – you've made a Music Department girl cry!"

Ryoutarou rolled his eyes at his whistling teammate and rushed to his kouhai's side. He would never have let a soccer ball go astray under _his_ foot, had he not been distracted by the sound of a violin coming from the rooftop. If it had been constantly playing, it would've been fine. The problem was that it had only played for a total of five minutes and twenty-six seconds before stopping (not that Ryoutarou counted or anything). There had to be something wrong.

Only worries about a certain redhead could force a soccer ball to fly astray under Tsuchiura Ryoutarou's foot. Not that Tsuchiura Ryoutarou would admit that anytime soon.

But of course it was probably a better idea to zoom in the cameras on poor Shouko, as she was quite unwell and need all the possible attention. She had begun to sob a little, her right hand trembling as it covered the poor, brutalized spot of her poor head, her left hand clenching tightly into a fist and resting stubbornly at her chin. Ryoutarou was appalled at the trauma he had caused, and when he realized just _who_ exactly this poor victim was, he felt like shooting himself.

Fuyuumi, of all people!

"Oh _God_, Fuyuumi, I am terribly sorry," As he finally skidded to a stop before her, he bowed repeatedly to express his apology, "I didn't do it on purpose. Are you all right?"

"Tsuchiura-senpai…" The poor girl, who had always been somewhat afraid of Ryoutarou, muttered in a helpless manner that made Ryoutarou want to blow out his own brains even more, "It's – sob – okay – sob – I'm – sob – fairly – sob – okay…"

The pianist sighed, "You're far from fairly okay if you can't even stop sobbing."

Shouko made no response, because her sobs became more violent. Ryoutarou was thus discomposed by the uncontrolled crying kouhai before his eyes, and was void of a suitable, gentlemanly thing to do. When he heard Kazuki's upbeat "What's up guys", he felt like he had found a savior, and for the first time in his life, Kazuki seemed like the greatest saint there is.

"Hihara-senpai!" He called out to the green-haired boy eagerly, looking no different from a monkey trying to simultaneously smile and cry, "Help!"

"Ha?" Kazuki, who was hugging the pot of hyacinth which he had bought merely a day ago, blinked in bafflement. He came closer and, when he saw the tears on Shouko's face, completely _freaked out_.

"GYAA, why is Fuyuumi-chan crying? Fuyuumi-chan, are you okay? Do you have a stomachache? Is anything stuck in your eye? Was someone bullying you?" The thought of a bully seized him as he turned swiftly with much alarm to Ryoutarou, squinting in an unfriendly manner that caused Ryoutarou to back off, "Did _you_ bully Fuyuumi-chan, Tsuchiura Ryoutarou-kouhai?"

Ryoutarou sighed, "I _did_ accidentally kick a soccer ball flying and it happened to have landed on Fuyuumi's head, _but_ it was not on purpose. Hihara-senpai, what am I supposed to do now?"

Dismay struck him when he realized that Kazuki had begun to ignore him. "Aah, poor Fuyuumi-chan… it's okay, the pain is going to go away soon. That's it, just lift up your hand and let senpai see – whoa!"

"What?" Ryoutarou tensed, alarmed by the suddenness of Kazuki's outburst. "Don't make the world even more cruel for me, senpai – what happened?"

Kazuki turned to stare at him with teary eyes, before stepping aside and declaring with the most sorrowful tone one could ever manage,

"**Fuyuumi-chan's beautiful green hair has been covered by yucky mud from the soccer ball…**"

Shouko yelped at the knowledge of such a _horrendous_ deed. She had _never_ gotten mud stuck on her hair in her entire_ life_, due to her outstanding family background which we all know about. The thought of ugly mud coating her silky hair made her sobs utterly incontrollable. This completely freaked out the two boys standing before her, as they babbled indignantly in efforts to console her, "Oi Fuyuumi, don't cry! It'll be washed off in no time!" "Yeah, Fuyuumi-chan, Hihara-senpai will give you a cute bear if you stop crying, okay?" "Fuyuumi, I actually _am_ so sorry about that soccer ball, so if you wanna make your senpai feel better you should stop crying, okay?" "Fuyuumi-chan…"

* * *

When Yui reached Keiichi's usual practice room, she was beat from the running, and her knee hurt. When she saw that he was _not there_, she could've collapsed from a sensation of _epic fail_.

But he has to be here. Where else could he be? She'd just heard his cello a while ago. Yui walked into the rather large practice room and looked around. No signs of Shimizu Keiichi.

She sighed tiredly and seated herself on the piano bench. By _tomorrow morning_, she would have to hand over the list of concours performances to Kanazawa. Which meant that she had to find Keiichi today. It could not be helped – she would run around the school _one_ more time. If he was not around, she'd have to obtain his address from Kanazawa and stalk him at night. Arrgh, the _one_ day she didn't have to work, she had to do _this_!

She really wished that she hadn't damaged his cello.

Feeling like she could finally breath properly, she stood up, patted her hurting knee a bit, and prepared to take leave, before something suspicious caught her eyes.

_What is that black thingamabob there behind the grand piano?_ She squinted dubiously at the unknown object and decided to take a look. To take a look was a wise decision – but to charge with much speed towards the unknown object was by no means a bright manner of investigation.

As one is well-acquainted with Nishihara Yui's clumsiness, one would not be surprised to learn that she had lost balance at some point during her "attack", and pathetically tripped over the unknown black article. "&#*($#..." She cursed as she felt a sharp pain in her knee, and knew that the wound from a few days ago had reopened. The worst was not yet over – she has yet to land. She closed her eyes and expected a blunt and hurtful landing, but when she felt that it was a soft, cushiony object that she had made contact with, she knew that something was _terribly wrong_.

She opened her eyes, even though she really didn't want to.

She found her own eyes staring into a pair of flawless emerald orbs, and wondered at the lengths of the eyelashes adorning them.

Descriptions may be omitted. It was your ordinary she-fell-and-landed-on-him-scenario.

Silence. Stares. And then –

"Good God even though it's so soft it still hurts and I can't move – OH! That black thingamabob was a _shoe_! Of _course_! I can't believe I couldn't tell! Gee, the next time I see a black thingamabob near a piano I would definitely know what it is - "

The reaction, however, one must admit, was not so ordinary.

Keiichi stared with much confusion at the foreign pair of brown eyes _abnormally _close to his own, and blinked numerous times at the foreign human being sprawled awkwardly over him, before deciding to utter the _one_ thing that is _not_ uttered in a she-fell-and-landed-on-him-scenario, in his soft, lazy and _very slow_ voice,

"You're Nishihara, right?"

"…Amazing. I tripped over your _cello_ and you still can't recognize my face instantly. All hail Shimizu Keiichi the airhead."

"…Nishihara, I'm running out of air."

"…Right." Yui, finally feeling like she had regained the ability to move, jumped off of her acquaintance swiftly, "Sorry about that, Shimizu. Your shoe was taking a very interesting shape near the grand piano, so I was curious. Knowing me, my curiosity, and of course my infinite clumsiness, I could only say that you're very wise in not leaving your cello out."

Keiichi sat up and rubbed his eyes, not seeming to hear her rambles, "You're looking for me?"

"Yep. Since you were so well-hidden behind the grand piano, I would've missed you had your shoe not looked so intriguing from the position it was resting in - "

"… Can you just get to the point?"

"Oh my God! You've just showed me that you _do_ listen! The world is a magical place!"

"…"

"Anyway, yes, it is perhaps a good idea if I do get to the point. My point is – what are you playing in the concours?"

Keiichi looked at the bunch of scattered sheet music around him, and replied halfheartedly, "One of these pieces."

Such a response made Yui feel like she had just swallowed flies, "… Please be specific, Shimizu."

With much reluctance Keiichi began rummaging through the endless sheets of music lying on the ground. Of course, Shimizu Keiichi's idea of "rummaging" is fairly different from that of Nishihara Yui's. The latter watched in horror as the former slowly picked up _one_ sheet, read the title out loud, shook his head, and put it back down where it was. She declared silently that she had _never_ seen a human being as slow as him in her entire life.

And when she made a quick count of how many pieces of sheet music were lying around, she sighed and leaned against the grand piano.

_This is going to take the entire afternoon._

* * *

Due to constant friendly urges of her upperclassmen, Shouko's sobs slowed, and the tears gradually stopped as well. Kazuki and Ryoutarou were evidently relieved to see that she had stopped crying, but there was a new problem – she was stubbornly covering her hair, refusing to go anywhere anytime soon.

"Um, but, senpai… what am I going to do now… with my hair covered in mud?" She asked shyly with her usual shivers, _both_ of her hands resting firmly above her head. Let us remember that she was dealing with one of the most difficult problems in life that she had _ever_ encountered.

"I don't know… we could go wash it!"

Shouko shook her head stubbornly and refused to move.

Kazuki sighed in exasperation, "You know, if Yunoki were here, he would know _just _what to do with a distressed lady. Where is he when we need him?"

"Why, are you looking for me?" A somewhat snaky voice flowed from somewhere behind the fussing boys, and Azuma made his well-timed appearance, with his ever-so-deep smile on the face. Then he noticed poor Shouko, who had yet to recover from her earlier tears, and his casual impression turned into a surprised, concerned one. "My, something happened to Fuyuumi-chan?"

Ryoutarou scoffed and uttered, "Soccer ball. Head. Hair covered in mud."

Such a concise description was enough for Azuma. He evidently understood as his expressions morphed back into his normal, smiling one, "My, my, poor Fuyuumi-chan. It's going to be all right – let's go to the closest place with water and wash it off, okay? I believe the nurse's office is fairly close – let's all go there together. What do you say to that, Fuyuumi-chan?"

Kazuki and Ryoutarou watched breathlessly for Shouko's reactions, and when she nodded obediently and did not object, they let out sighs of relief.

"Come to think of it, how does Yunoki-senpai _do_ that?" Ryoutarou whispered with a raised eyebrow to Kazuki, doubt evident in his voice, "Didn't we also suggest going to the nurse's office and washing it off?"

Kazuki thought of the matter with a serious impression on the face, only to give up halfway through, "Yunoki is abnormal. That's all. We'll never understand how he works, Tsuchiura…"

"Did you say something?" Azuma, who had begun escorting Shouko, turned back to look at the two whispering boys behind him with his usual _deep_ smile, his voice sounding strangely distant, causing the duo to immediately tense and shut up. "No, absolutely nothing!"

"Ah, by the way, Hihara, what is that interestingly large object in your hands? It seems a very cumbersome burden to be carrying around the campus."

"Oh, um," at the thought of his gift to Hino-chan, Kazuki immediately turned red, and a massive run-on sentence immediately escaped his mouth, "Yeah I was bored the other day so I walked around and I went to this flower shop and saw Nishihara-chan and she helped me select the flower and gave me ideas on what I should play and stuff and so I bought the flower and probably wanna give it to… someone…"

He considered suicide when he heard a small laugh coming from Shouko.

"In short, this object is a pot of flower, and you probably intend to give it away to some girl." Azuma summarized, his smile deeper than usual. Such a summary caused Kazuki to speak gibberish, and Ryoutarou to smirk, "Wow, Hihara-senpai, who's the lucky girl?"

Shouko, so amused by her senpai's unusual behaviour, briefly forgot about her shyness and remarked with a smile, "We can be assured that it's neither me nor Nishihara-chan."

When she saw that all three boys were staring at her, she realized that she had spoken more than she would usually say, and immediately returned to her shy self.

"Oh come on, Fuyuumi! That was a witty comment!"

"Don't force her, Tsuchiura."

"You guys, stop taking pleasure in my private affairs!"

"_Private_? Did you just _admit_ that you_ are_ actually giving it to some girl whom you're admiring?"

"WHA – no, t-t-t-that is so totally not it!"

"You're red to the ears, Hihara-senpai."

"Pfft…"

"Waah, you made Fuyuumi-chan laugh at me again! You're horrible people!"

"You just noticed that? C'mon, senpai, tell us who it is. Is it Hino, by any chance?"

"WHA – d-d-d-don't be ridiculous, Tsuchiura!"

"Whoa, I actually got it right? I just realized that I possess Sherlock Holmes power."

"Stop teasing me, Tsuchiura!"

"But it's so fun to tease you, right, Tsuchiura?"

"Totally, Yunoki-senpai."

"Pfft…"

"Noooo, Fuyuumi-chan, don't fall in the same league as _they_ are!"

"We are going to assimilate Fuyuumi-chan."

"Guys, just stop it!" By the time Kazuki opened the door of the nurse's office, he was beyond the colour of an octopus. But his troubles were soon forgotten about when the group spotted Len and Kahoko. The former was bandaging the fingers of the latter.

"Whoa, Hino-chan, what happened?"

Kahoko turned to look with much surprise, "Hihara-senpai, Yunoki-senpai, Tsuchiura-kun _and_ Fuyuumi-chan? What are you all doing here?"

Len, at that instant, had finished bandaging the last of Kahoko's hurt fingers, so he retreated and sighed.

Shouko, seeing her favourite senpai hurt, forgot all about her own trouble, "I have mud on my hair – but never mind that for a second, Hino-senpai, what happened to you?"

Kahoko and Len exchanged a glance, and the former sighed,

"Long story."

* * *

"Aah, found it…" Keiichi lifted his arm lazily and shoved the piece of sheet music under Yui's nose. Yui accepted it and looked at the title.

"Interesting choice…"

* * *

_Felix Mendelssohn,_ _Song without Words Op. 109_.

* * *

"But what does it have to do with your hidden desires?" The girl raised an eyebrow and asked, baffled. Keiichi glanced at her with his sleepy eyes, and replied steadily as she returned his sheet music,

"The theme is 'hidden desires'. There aren't any other specifications. I don't have to play about _my_ hidden desires, do I?"

An orange ray of sunlight gilded the figures of the cellist and the songstress, and for what seemed like the longest time, neither of them said a word. She scribbled quietly on her notebook, and he stared at the title of his sheet music. There was something in the silence that showed him that she had understood, and it was enough.

It was Keiichi who broke the silence, with a blunt phrase that failed to match the atmosphere,

"…Nishihara, you're bleeding again."

"What?" The poor girl immediately deserted her notebook and cast a look at her knee – and her soul nearly left her when she saw. Her old wound had reopened, she knew that – but she didn't know that it would be so serious. Her entire kneecap was bathed in blood.

The sight horrified the poor hemophobic girl completely.

CLUNK

Keiichi blinked at the fainted figure on the ground and sighed.

He supposed that he would have to somehow maneuver her to the nurse's office – just like last time.

* * *

Everyone sat in a circle around Kahoko and listened to her story.

While she was practicing on the roof, she had overheard some random bullies threatening Len. In a desperate attempt to take the heat off of Len, who was about to be beaten up imminently, she grabbed a millipede that _happened_ to be crawling around and chucked it into the leading bully's shirt collar –

Despite her serious face as she told the tale, the group could not help laughing.

- Because the leading bully had never before gotten a _millipede_ in his shirt, he growled angrily and threw a glass bottle that he just _happened_ to have at Kahoko, who, though she had dodged a blow in the head, fell and landed near the shattered glass, and got her fingers cut. The bullies ran way due to sight of blood, and Len had brought her to the nurse's office.

"What! Evil bullies!"

Kazuki exclaimed with much enthusiasm, causing Kahoko to chuckle nervously, "But it's not _me_ you should be worrying about. My fingers will heal in no time. Those bullies are targeting Tsukimori-kun."

Ryoutarou mumbled under his breath, "To let a girl stand up for him – I'm not impressed."

"What was that, Tsuchiura?"

"Nothing."

Ryoutarou's eyes happened to meet Len's. They looked away eagerly.

"But a few bullies are not to intimidate Tsukimori, are they?" Azuma remarked, his smile as radiant as usual, "I am sure that Tsukimori's top-notch performance will be able to silence them."

"Aah, true enough, true enough," Kazuki, upbeat and optimistic, readily agreed. Len nodded briefly, and everyone knew that he meant "thanks".

Kahoko smiled, before she caught sight of the pot of wrapped flower lying on the side and asked with much curiosity, "Hihara-senpai, you brought that in, right? What is that?"

"Oh, um," Kazuki blushed and stuttered nervously, "W-Well, it's a pot of hyacinth. I was going to give it to my – erm, cousin after school today, b-b-but since you're hurt, I think y-y-you should have it, Hino-chan!"

Azuma chuckled, Ryoutarou sighed hopelessly, and Shouko let out a small "pfft". Kazuki turned and shot them a childishly angry glare, yet utter redness could not help but coat his face.

Kahoko, however, was utterly unaware. "Aww, that's so sweet, Hihara-senpai! Are you sure your cousin won't mind?"

"Oh, I can buy her one anytime I want!"

"Then I'll gladly take it! Thank you so much! In return, what do you say to some ice-cream tomorrow, if I could manage it?"

"Ice-cream? Sure!" At the thought of ice-cream, Kazuki bounced happily and completely forgot about his personal troubles. Azuma chuckled again, Ryoutarou sighed even more hopelessly, and Shouko let out an even smaller "pfft". Len scowled, and silently tried to explain to himself just _why_ exactly he was so annoyed.

"I have just realized," Azuma interrupted the ongoing conversation about ice-cream and declared, "That if Shimizu is here, then all of the concours participants would be here in the _nurse's office_. What an interesting afternoon."

At exactly that instant, the door of the office was pushed open, and Shimizu Keiichi entered, tiredly attempting to support the weight of an out-cold Nishihara Yui. Shouko yelped and cuddled to Kahoko as she saw the overflowing of blood coming from poor Yui's knee, while various others were busy exclaiming, "Good Lord, what happened?"

"Well, well," Azuma muttered under his breath, clearly amused by the well-timed entrance, "What an interesting afternoon indeed."

Len sighed, "Troublesome." Ryoutarou shook his head yet again, "Is today that 'Girls-Get-Hurt' day or something? Well, Shimizu? What's the explanation?"

"She's heavy…" Keiichi mumbled and let out a breath of relief as he practically threw Yui onto the closest bed there was. The nurse attended to her immediately. He turned lazily to the others and dictated flatly, "Came to get my piece for the concours. I was asleep. Tripped over me. Wound reopened. Fears blood. Fainted."

"…Smooth, real smooth."

Keiichi slumped down on a chair and blinked with utter confusion at the group before his eyes, "…Why is everyone here?"

The group exchanged glances, before a uniform sigh occurred,

"Long story."

After some moments of bickering, it was decided that Azuma would tell the tale of just how exactly was it that they _all_ ended up in the nurse's office. Unfortunately, Keiichi's curiosity (if he had any) had to be put on hold, for Yui had begun to stir on the hospital bed. She caught all the attention when she suddenly shot straight up with panicked expressions, and screamed with her hands at her head as if it were the end of the universe,

"Shimizu's blue cello! I didn't land on it, did I?"

She looked about wildly in utter confusion. When she saw _all_ of the concours participants, she proceeded to look exactly like Edvard Munch's "Scream" painting, "NO, I didn't do it _again_, did I? You're not all here to sentence me again, are you? Shimizu is going to be without a cello for the _concours_ – what have I done? Shimizu, I know I'm unforgivable – you could just throw me down the depth of hell now – I'm _so, so, so_ sorry - "

Keiichi halted her potentially ongoing monologue with a sigh, "My cello's fine…"

"…Oh. Then where am I?"

She moved to sit at the edge of the bed, only to nearly tumble back down when she saw her knee, still partially covered in blood.

The nurse scowled with disapproval and pushed her into a resting position, "This is the nurse's office. Don't be so violent just yet – I still haven't finished bandaging your knee. You may feel weak, given that you have just fainted."

Yui did indeed feel weak, and didn't dare taking another look at her knee as the nurse began to "work" on it. Shouko watched with horror as the nurse applied a medical tincture of iodine to the (by then _very large_) wound, knowing that it would hurt _a lot_; but when she saw that Yui only reacted by clenching her fists and biting her lip, Shouko was astonished.

She cast another glance at Kahoko. Her fingers were bandaged, and yet she was smiling and teasing Yui about how the latter had no sense of pain. Shouko looked down and let out an unnoticeable sigh.

She did not hear Azuma's very amusing explanation as to just _what_ exactly had brought everyone here. She had something else on her mind. Hino-senpai was brought here because her fingers were hurt, and Nishihara-chan was brought here because of her knee – but what about herself? She was brought here because she had _mud_ on her head.

Shouko felt a little lame.

Shouko also felt a little jealous. How was it that Hino-senpai and Nishihara-chan could be so outgoing and happy all the time? How was it that they could talk to the others without stuttering like she did? And how was it that they could handle pain so well? Shouko wanted to be able to endure pain, because then she wouldn't be crying so much all the time and worrying her senpai.

Shouko didn't know Nishihara-chan very well, so Shouko wouldn't remark too much about her; but Shouko really wanted to be like Hino-senpai. Shouko wished she could be more open, and could talk to others without blushing or stuttering. Shouko wondered if that would ever happen.

But if Shouko really tried, would it happen?

If she'd just be a little bolder everyday, would there be a small chance that, one day, she would be just like Hino-senpai?

Probably. There'd be a small chance for _anything_, if Shouko really tried.

So Shouko was going to try.

Or, at least, _start_ trying.

Shouko clenched her fist and nodded with determination as she suddenly declared to Yui, making no notice whatsoever that she was interrupting Azuma's explanation,

"Nishihara-chan, I want to change my piece for the concours."

Silence. All the eyes were focused on Shouko. For a split second she felt like backing off, but when she thought of her newfound determination, she was firm.

After all, nobody would eat her if she decided that she would change her _own_ concours piece.

Yui, a little surprised at Shouko's sudden decision, was nonetheless supportive, "Sure, if you want to. What's the name of the new piece?"

Shouko paused pensively, and when she replied, she sounded surprisingly steady.

"It's a contemporary piece – _La naissance d'un papillon : The Birth of A Butterfly _(1), Yvonne Desportes."

A pause. Then, to Shouko's surprise, everyone smiled.

"Roger that," Yui replied, her smile widening as she jumped off of the bed. "I will now immediately go back to whatever practice room I came from and retrieve my notebook." She made a gallant gesture to run – only to slump onto the floor. The nurse shot her a glare, and Shouko yelped, rushing to her aid.

"#&^&$*#..." Gibberish flew out of her mouth as she squirmed indignantly and hugged her hurt knee, "Good _God_, I can barely move with this bum knee!"

"Aww, poor Nishihara-chan! You should be more careful next time!" Kazuki was clearly sympathetic, "I can go get your notebook for you if you tell me where you were!"

"I was in Shimizu's usual practice room…"

"Hold it, Hihara. I think we should let Shimizu go and get it."

"…Huh? But why _me_, Yunoki-senpai?"

"Because only _you_ know where she'd left her notebook. Your usual practice room is quite large, no?"

"But _she_ tripped over_ me_… I should at least be left out of _her_ business…"

"Le gasp, Shimizu-kun! Have some gentlemanly spirit! If _you_ weren't sleeping on the _floor_ as always, she wouldn't have tripped!"

"…Hino-senpai, stop defending her… just because you know her…"

"Hey, it's not just because I _know_ her, it's because she's _hurt_!"

"Haha, it's okay guys, it's the iodine. I can go after ten minutes, I think."

"Aww, Nishihara-chan, are you sure?"

"Yeah – EEP blood is coming out of the bandage help good Lord I'm gonna die Mommy help me I haven't written a will yet - "

"Nishihara-chan!"

"…Fine, I'll go… Nishihara, your notebook is blue, right?"

"Y-Y-Y-Yes~… T-T-Thank y-you…"

"While you're at it with the kindness, Shimizu, why don't you walk her home as well? Don't you two live kind of close with each other?"

"…What? Hihara-senpai, that's too much to ask… I have a cello to carry…"

"I'll… be… fine~…"

"You will not, because more blood is sure to be seen through the bandage if you were to walk. And since you're so afraid of blood, let's not risk it. Why don't I drive you both home? It's hard enough for Shimizu to look after his own cello; we wouldn't want to entrust him with Nishihara-chan's life, would we?"

"…Yunoki-senpai, what's that supposed to mean?"

Shouko watched with much amusement at the arguing bunch, as she helped in resting Yui into a comforting position on the bed.

_Some day, I'll be part of the happy conversation, just like everyone else…_

_Because I'm going to _start_ to change._

* * *

(1): A contemporary clarinet solo that actually exists, but I have _no_ idea what it sounds like XD. All I know is that it is a very challenging piece, and that it had a very appropriate name for Shouko ;D.

* * *

_I would forever love you if you could drop a **review** :D!_


	5. Kyrie Eleison: The Slipup

_I have my English exam in 2 days._

_Exactly why I'm putting up an update today! XD How paradoxical. But the update is here! Quite a mini one compared to the previous chapter, but hopefully just as delighting :). Merci beaucoup to Sweet Nightmare's Good Byes, Anime-Kunoichi, thenolifequeen and Amy-chan123 for the reviews! Hope you enjoy this one! :)_

_And, well, love - okay, maybe subtle hints of budding liking - is coming XD. I know I'm slow at getting to that jazz. Can't help it though; I have a rooted firm belief that relationships can only develop with a slow pace and constant steps towards knowing each other._

_'Sides, it's very hard to imagine Shimizu the epic airhead in love._

_:)_

* * *

**Bass Clef V – Kyrie Eleison: The Slip-up**

Yunoki Azuma stared at the stage, his eyes emitting an oddly empty light.

The second round of the concours was over without any mishaps. Not even the ranking was much of a surprise. It was all too much of a bore for Azuma. He'd expected the flow to be more interesting. He only hoped that some event of interest would occur next time, because if not, his interest in the concours would commence its deterioration.

That was not to say that he would lose interest in the flute. The flute was one of the few aspects of life that managed to successfully amuse Yunoki Azuma. Yunoki Azuma was a hard person to impress, and therefore, when Yunoki Azuma finds himself attributing the word "fun" to a certain phenomenon, Yunoki Azuma holds on to that certain phenomenon and hopes to make the most of it.

Might as well enjoy the amusement while it lasted.

Azuma smiled at the thought of one particular person that would always amuse him for no particular reason.

_Hino Kahoko_.

_Will you surprise me next time, and save me from losing interest in the concours?_

Faintly, he heard some off-tune humming coming from the distance, and a second interesting thought began to encircle his mind.

_The Phantom Voice of Seisou Academy, when will you cease to be a phantom?_

He turned away from the stage, his smile turning into a smirk.

_It _will_ get interesting, won't it?_

* * *

"Ah, it's over!" Kahoko stretched and slouched tiredly against the wall, giving her kouhai on the side a nudge, "Man! It was somewhat tiring. It must've been pretty bad for you to have had to decorate and everything else – hey Yui-chan?"

"Zzzzz…"

Kahoko sighed. An acquaintance with Shimizu-kun had certainly rubbed off on _her_.

The most practical feat to attempt then was to rest with her, because Kahoko, for the moment, had nothing better to do. She had just finished with two hours of practicing on her magic violin, and she was quite tired.

Unfortunately, a rare moment of lovely rest was almost immediately disturbed by a distinct loud voice, "Yo, Hino, Nishihara!"

Such a volume was too much for the sleeping Yui, causing she to bounce up and inspect her surroundings with much alarm, "Oh, what, eh, what's going on? Did I fall asleep?" She then proceeded to bump her head onto a brick that lurked in obscurity, and cursed with much indignity.

Kahoko shot her a glare, "…Shimizu-kun's air-headedness is a bad influence, I see." Then she turned to salute the approaching figure with her usual beam, "Hello Amou-chan. What's up?"

Amou Nami slumped down and joined the girls in their resting positions, and stated her business in her usual upbeat voice, "Gathering information as always. Hino, would you like to be interviewed - "

"Can it be another day? I'm beat."

Amou sighed, "Fine… but you _must_ do it tomorrow."

"Fine…"

"And Nishihara, I've been meaning to find you."

Yui rubbed her eyes and asked lazily, "What is it, Amou-senpai?"

"Since you've been up close with the concours, the journalism club was wondering if you could help us with our special concours column. We're even thinking of getting you your own corner, so you could maybe, you know, start a sort of a journal there, and title it 'A Regular Department Student's Reflections on the Concours' or something. This way we can promote the popularity of the concours in the Regular Department. What d'you say?"

Yui looked with horror at her smiling senpai, "…In short, you have more work for me."

"Essentially, yes."

"But Amou-senpai, the highest grade I've ever gotten in my Japanese Lit. class is 79 percent. You really think I can write _articles_?"

Amou's smile seemed to freeze for a split second. She had once had the honour to edit one of Nishihara Yui's essays, and she had to admit that she wasn't very impressed by what she'd seen. "Well, no, you won't be writing it, but you'll be proofreading it, how's that? You'll point out anything that feels false to you, so that we can preserve the authenticity of your opinion _while_ avoiding your, excuse me, not very lovely writing."

Yui supposed she could handle _that_ much.

"Very well, then it's settled. Thanks for your help, Nishihara!"

As Amou sprinted out of sight, Kahoko whispered dubiously to her kouhai, a hint of worry in her voice, "Yui-chan, can you really do it? Don't you have a million other things on your hands right now, with the concours, the fee for the broken cello and the studies?"

Yui shrugged, "I guess it just means that I'll spend more of my time out of my home, that's all."

She cast a look towards the distant clouds, and a small, bitter smile crawled its way to her lips.

"After all, what's there to do in an empty house, right? My parents work so much that they're almost never home. Might as well occupy myself like they're doing."

Kahoko sighed and gave her kouhai a pat on the head, because she did not know what exactly to reply.

* * *

Yunoki Azuma was not amused.

For one thing, he could not quite solve the mystery of The Millipede.

Well, perhaps it was just A Millipede. Yes, it was just a millipede.

However, when a millipede has managed to crawl into the body of Azuma's $6.5K flute, it has become The Millipede.

In short, an animal from the kingdom Animalia, the phylum Arthropoda, the subphylum Myriapoda, the class Diplopoda, and the order and family of God-knew-what – or, simply put, a millipede – was in Yunoki Azuma's flute.

If it had been somebody else's flute, Azuma would've been more than amused. But it had been his own. As much as he was intrigued by it at the beginning, he was irritated when it _simply refused to come out_. Besides, Azuma was more than certain that his flute was kept well in his case. A millipede could not have naturally crawled through the _shut lid_ of the case, passed the _protective foam_ around the flute body, and _entered_. Somebody had tampered with his flute at some point during the day, and had done so by inserting a millipede into his precious flute's body.

Of course, Azuma had no idea that that _somebody_ would be a bored Fata by the name of Lili. Thus, the mystery of The Millipede would forever remain a mystery, to Azuma at least.

But we may talk of that later; right now, one needs to be reminded that the millipede did not come out. Unless Azuma decided to utilize extreme means which may threaten the wellbeing of his flute, it was not about to exit its new, comfortable home anytime soon.

Therefore, Yunoki Azuma was far from amused, not even when Hino Kahoko had come to join him on the rooftop.

Kahoko had no idea that Azuma was on the rooftop, of course. When she'd caught sight of his figure, her first instinct was to leave immediately. Azuma had been unleashing a dark side to her lately – a side that she had never known him to have. He'd urged her to drop out of the concours, and he'd told her that she really irked him. It was a shocking discovery. Kahoko had once contemplated telling another, but was soon acquainted with the idea that, unfortunately, nobody would believe her, not even Nishihara Yui the Bizarre-Minded. Because of his intimidating double personality, she'd feared him for the past few weeks, and she would've been glad to have escaped another misfortune of communicating with him.

But Kahoko did not leave immediately, and she didn't quite know why. It was perhaps because she noticed that he was fumbling with his flute in an… unusual manner that didn't quite suit his calm personality.

_Do flute players always wave parts of their flute around in such a frantic manner?_ Kahoko wondered, simultaneously amazed and amused. _Is it a ritual before they play or something? Probably not… I've never seem him do it before. I realize that the accumulation of saliva is a bit of a problem, but waving the flute like that – isn't it going to cause the saliva to make its flying flamboyant exit, which probably does no good to anyone? How would that solve the problem?_

The thought of Azuma causing his own saliva to spill all over the place simply cracked poor Kahoko up. Because of that, she could no longer hide her presence. And because of that, she had to endure a very _dark_ stare from Azuma that almost sent her crying into Kanazawa-sensei's laps (one of the last things she'd ever envision herself doing).

However, Azuma wasn't in the mood of torturing Kahoko just then; getting the millipede _out_ of his flute seemed more important. Such a task seemed easier with more helpers. Therefore, he felt obliged to display his kind soul, and hide his smirk as he saw Kahoko's relieved face.

"Hino-chan, I am in a bit of a trouble."

"Oh, um," Kahoko tried hard to not snicker. She felt every muscle in her face tense with the pretense of serenity. "Is that trouble the cause of your… erm, waving your flute in… an odd manner?"

Azuma chuckled with a certain degree of embarrassment and explained, "Yes. What is a man supposed to do when he finds a millipede in his flute, right?"

Kahoko almost choked at the bizarre knowledge, "A _millipede_?"

"Yes, a _millipede_. Now isn't that odd? What is even more intriguing is that no matter how hard I shake my poor flute, the millipede refuses to crawl out. Perhaps it has taken my flute for a comfortable lodging."

Kahoko eagerly accepted Azuma's offer of the flute body, and peeked into it with much curiosity. "Wow, that's a pretty _big_ millipede!"

"I realize."

In an attempt to dispose of the bug, Kahoko repeatedly thrust the flute downwards. But the millipede remained, as if its feet were glued to the interior of the flute. She then acquired a twig and poked the bug, but the bug still refused to move. After some more moments of trying attempts, Kahoko began screaming into the flute, hoping to scare it off. It stubbornly remained, and turned its very long body around to face the other way when Kahoko looked into the interior of the flute with her eye, as if saying "I refuse to communicate with you".

Kahoko flamed. She had been thrust in the face with the attitude of a _bug_!

"This millipede is _very_ scandalous!" She roared as she raised the flute body, forgetting that it was a part of Azuma's sacred flute, and prepared to slam it onto the floor with the strength of Hercules, which she had acquired from her grudge against the millipede. Azuma smelled danger and hastened to restrain her.

Thus, Hino Kahoko found herself in an awkward position. Her wrist was being tightly held onto by the slender fingers of the flautist, and her waist was wrapped around by his restraining arm. To top it off, he seemed to have found his dark self, as he whispered with much amusement at her ear,

"Calm down, Hino-chan."

Such a voice did not calm her down. Instead, it made her heart race more. Azuma realized so as he promptly let go, returning to his kind impression (his flute _was_ more important, at the moment), his smile as deep as always, "I merely wanted to save my flute."

Kahoko laughed nervously, but could not force a hint of red to recede from her face.

And yet what to do with the millipede?

"Yunoki-senpai, have you ever thought of washing it out with water?"

"Come to think of it, no, I haven't yet thought of it. Then let's go, Hino-chan, to the closest faucet there is."

* * *

But Yui didn't expect her determination to sway so soon.

She looked with much horror at the ugly "62" sitting atop her latest geography test. It had plunged almost _twenty_ percent! If she couldn't even keep up with her studies during her _first year_, how was she ever going to survive the next two?

But it wasn't her fault if she loathed social sciences. Besides, how was the history of the world and the locations of country capitals going to aid her in the future as a florist?

Then again, a minimum 85 average…

Yui shook her head frantically and refused to think of it. After all, it was only her first year, and she had plenty of opportunities to improve her marks in the next two years or so.

Okay, she might've thought that merely to comfort herself. No matter how she looked at it, 62 was still a grand failure!

Yui felt imaginary tears accumulating into a liquid wall, ready to crash down on her and sweep her into the ocean of torn despair. She groaned loudly and thrust her test paper fiercely into her bag, which she always carried with her wherever she went, and refused to think anymore of it, because she was definitely going to improve on the next test.

Five minutes of peace.

She sighed. No good. She had to somehow occupy herself with _something_, otherwise her mind would inevitably return to the geography of doom.

She scanned around for a hideout, and smiled at a shady, momentarily deserted path that stood before her.

_It wouldn't hurt to sing a bit, would it now?_

* * *

"…_You know, Nishihara, your reason's not good enough. If you want to sing, nothing should stop you from doing it…"_

"…_Shimizu, you make it sound so simple. Do you really understand my problem?"_

"…_That's for me to know and for you to find out…"_

* * *

_For the moment, there is nothing to stop me from singing._

_But only for the moment._

_So I'm going to grasp this moment and hold it tight._

She laughed to herself and began to run down the path.

There was only one song she would sing, after suffering the misfortune of a bad mark.

_Have some mercy for the poor Nishihara Yui!_

She laughed even harder at the thought of such a holy song connected with her paltry misfortune.

And she sang.

* * *

_Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Requiem: Kyrie Eleison (1)._

* * *

The soprano melody encircled her as she sped down the path, her pigtails swaying rhythmically against her shoulders, her bangs brushing against her forehead in accordance with the sweeps of the gentle breeze. The sound of her footsteps found an outlet in the leaf-coated ground, and presented itself as the crisp crunching of autumn leaves – a sound that Yui very much loved, a sound that amused her more than ever. She became blissfully unaware of her surroundings, and of course had no way of noticing the abrupt halt of a blaring trumpet on the roof, or a slight pause in the music of a clarinet, or a simultaneous cutoff in a nearby piano and a nearby violin.

She had no way of knowing that, in a practice room that happened to have its window open, a boy paused his virtuosic cello-playing and smiled.

* * *

"_Do you really understand my problem?"_

"_That's for me to know and for you to find out…"_

"…_Will I ever be able to?"_

"…_I wouldn't know…"_

* * *

Could he be aware? Her own voice was indeed the source of many of her most unpleasant memories, and yet –

It was also one of the few aspects of her life that rendered her beyond happy.

_I don't yet know if you truly understand, but…_

* * *

_Vocalise._

_Ave Maria._

_Song without Words._

"_I don't have to be playing about _my_ hidden desires, do I?"_

* * *

_You seem to know the one and only solution._

"_Winnow out the sorrow, and retain the joy."_

"…_You make it sound so simple, Shimizu."_

"…_But it _is _that simple, isn't it?"_

* * *

She delivered her last note passionately, and when she knew that the note had reached a suitable length, she faded away and heaved a relieved songstress's sigh. Her face was flushed, a common aftermath of skillful displays of vocal abilities. A nostalgic smile swam its way to her lips, and spread like a ripple to light up her entire face. Her chocolate eyes began to sparkle with newfound – no, retrieved energy, along with a glint of odd gratitude for _something_. What it was, she knew not, but…

_You win, Shimizu Keiichi. It really _is_ that simple._

"Y-Yui-chan…"

Yui stiffened as she recognized that voice.

The enjoyment of the lingering melody immediately flushed down the drain. She mechanically turned, and froze as she found herself staring at the figures of an astonished Hino Kahoko and a smiling Yunoki Azuma.

"Yui-chan… you're the voice, aren't you?"

Yui opened her mouth to reply to Kahoko's questioning statement, but could not.

_Rats. I slipped up. At last._

She sighed and prepared to dish out a good portion of her full secret – that is, until she noticed a perfect method to immediately divert the topic.

"My millipede! What is she doing on top of Yunoki-senpai's flute?"

* * *

(1): Kyrie Eleison: Greek for "Lord, have mercy"; the first acclamation in the Ordinary of the Latin Mass, sung directly after the introit (copied directly from www dot answers dot com). For more info on it, Google it XD!

* * *

_Dropping a **review** would really make my day and make me flash my charming gums at you in my overly large grin :D._


	6. Danse Macabre: The Mysterious Phantom

_Voila another chapter! I adored writing this mini one. I wanted to make it hilarious, but somehow a bit if depression just set in… Too much school. That must be it._

_On a more random note, my very own cello buddy – who looks scarily like Shimizu – almost killed himself the other day crossing the street while the light was still red. He credited such wisdom to the chain effect of "the morons" before him who were jaywalking, but Oh! the parallels and the coincidences! To think I had written the relevant scene of this chapter _before_ this incident! My writing is ominous! Foreboding! Portentous! My scribbles can alter ze world!_

_I shall effuse and expose my friend no longer. Thank you to __phoenixalia__, __Anime-Kunoichi__, __Jiyu22__, __thenolifequeen__, __Sayonara Yasashii Akumu__, __fanfatic08__, and Streiter Destiny __Miseki__ for reviewing, and all others who read but didn't review! Enjoy this mini one! :D_

* * *

**Bass Clef VI – Danse Macabre: The Mysterious Phantom**

"You slipped up…"

Shimizu Keiichi pointed out in his usual airy voice, as he cast a scattered glance at the girl walking beside him.

Nishihara Yui laughed nervously and shrugged, "I know, but nobody's made a big deal out of it. They just thought I was shy, so they just laughed at me…" She chuckled dryly at the thought of Kazuki, who had repeatedly patted her head and declared that Nishihara-chan ought not to be timid about her abilities. "They still don't know my secret in full, so it's all good."

"But now that they know you sing, they know a part of your secret…"

"Haha, I guess. Sorry to let your efforts go to waste."

"…My… efforts? What efforts?"

"…You know, your falling asleep whenever somebody asks you about the Phantom Voice…"

"Those weren't efforts… I was just sleepy…"

Yui sighed. Either that was true, or he simply refused to admit that he had actually tried to help a girl by keeping her secret. Either way, she wasn't about to find out anytime soon. "Whatever you say."

They walked along in a silence that lasted for about five minutes, before Yui raised a dubious eyebrow and inquired after a matter that truly worried her, "Shimizu, can you really pick up your other cello from my place without dropping off this one first…? Are you going to be able to carry around two cellos, along with your schoolbag, without any accidents?"

Keiichi blinked, "…But I'll have to walk more if I go home first… your place is kind of on the way…"

"But Shimizu, if anything happens, you understand that it'll be _two_ cellos you're losing, and I won't be responsible for paying for them."

"I'll probably be fine…" Keiichi mumbled and stepped off of the sidewalk. Yui was about to step off with him when she noticed that it was anything _but_ their turn to cross the road; she hastened to pull the airhead back, and nearly screamed when a car honked loudly and sped by, missing Keiichi's foot by merely three inches.

"Thank you…" Keiichi, albeit having been on the brink of (probable) death, seemed unmoved. Yui sighed and slammed decidedly, her voice trembling from fear of losing her acquaintance to a brutal demise, "You're _not_ going to carry two cellos home alone. I'm going to carry the other one and follow you to your place."

"Oh… okay then… sorry for the trouble…"

"…No problem." She just had _no_ idea what else to say to this person.

"Speaking of which… now that my cello is fixed and I've paid 100,000 yen… when are you going to pay me?"

"Umm… I can pay 30,000 yen today. The rest will probably come in about four weeks."

"Okay… and one more thing… what's with that millipede on your shoulder?"

The traffic light turned green, and Yui gave Keiichi a nudge to signal him to walk on.

"Oh, um, her name's Root. She's my pet millipede."

"…You keep a _pet_ millipede and named it _Root_?"

Yui swore that it was the first time she'd ever seen his eyes so widely open.

"Why yes, what's the harm? I like plants, so I figured that I'll name her Root. A millipede is quite harmless and, in fact, ideal as pets! I keep her in a tank and I don't have to walk her or anything. Although I'm not sure how she managed to follow me to school today and hide in Yunoki-senpai's flute, but…"

"Your _millipede_ was hiding in Yunoki-senpai's _flute_?" The volume of Keiichi's voice increased, causing Yui to blink repeatedly in a mixture of surprise and alarm. "Erm, I guess… Yunoki-senpai had troubles getting her out. See, Root is very lazy; once she finds an ideal place to rest in, she stays there. When Yunoki-senpai found me singing, she had come out, probably because she had heard my voice. So yeah, she's been reluctant to leave my shoulder ever since - "

She paused drastically and proceeded to rub her eyes.

She did _not_ just see that!

She did _not _just see Shimizu Keiichi smile!

She'd never seen such a pure smile from _anyone_ in her life. The way his eyebrows arched, the way his irises twinkled, the way his lips curled up – it was a _perfect_ smile, a smile that prompted her heart to skip a beat, a smile that sent somewhat of a warm tingle down her spine, a smile that, from that moment, became etched into the depth of her fondest memories.

_I want to see him smile again!_

She remarked silently to herself, while outwardly demanding just what exactly was so funny about her lovely millipede as to make _Shimizu Keiichi_ smile.

Keiichi shrugged, "It's just that… I've never met anyone who keeps pet millipedes before… so I thought it was kind of funny…"

Yui massaged the side of her forehead and sighed, before a defeated grin escaped her, "I guess there aren't many millipede parents around, huh? Well, you'll understand quite soon that I'm an odd one."

"Oh, but I already knew that…"

"Lord, you have just shown me that you do have some sense of humour! All hail Shimizu Keiichi, the always surprising one!"

"…"

"Ah, we're here. Wait out here, and _don't move a step_ while I go and get your cello. I don't want to see you and your intestines lying around due to a car accident when I come out, _understand_?"

"…Yes, _grandmother_…"

"EXCUSEZ MOI? You have just totally killed my youthful impression! Say that again?"

"…No… just go get my cello already…"

Thus, on such a day under such a condition, Shimizu Keiichi and Nishihara Yui jested for the first time at each other. Such was probably a hint that they had become a little more than acquaintances, and had moved a little closer to the concept of "friends".

But that can be more thoroughly discussed of later. There were more important matters at hand. As the duo began to stroll their way towards Keiichi's current home, Keiichi suddenly remembered an interesting tale which had been told to him by none other than the always resourceful Kazuki.

"Hey, Nishihara, now that the fake phantom is successfully dispatched ("Dispatched? Diction, Shimizu, diction!")… do you know anything about the _real_ phantom that's lurking in Seisou…?"

* * *

And hence…

* * *

"I want to go home…" Yui mumbled in utter disdain as she stared with much horror at the spooky silhouette of the school, on a dark, eerie night where a chilling windswept dominated the land.

She marched toward the half-open gate, her legs shaking from fear. "I do _not_ believe in this stupid phantom that Shimizu told me about last week. Why do I even believe in _anything _that Shimizu says anyway? He was probably half asleep when he said it… Anyway, I go into the practice room, grab my forgotten belongings, and go home. Nothing is going to happen to me. No phantom is going to jump out and eat me. I'll be _just fine_." She inhaled at the end of each sentence, and mumbled to herself continuously as she stepped rigidly down the path towards the school building.

She cursed the wind for blowing so strongly on such a night. Did whatever all-powerful creature up there really think her thin, frail body could withstand such harassment of the harsh nature? She swore that if she were _not_ wearing her large jacket just then, she would've been blown off to some exotic land that resembled Hawaii.

Stupid Shimizu Keiichi! If he were not _sleeping_ in his practice room _again _looking exactly like a corpse, she would not have dropped all her belongings and screamed. If he had waken up when she screamed, she would not have had to drag him to the nurse's office looking exactly like the "Scream" painting. If he did _not_ worry her immensely when he finally awoke, or if he had actually _recognized her face_ when she tried to communicate, she would not have escorted him home, forgetting all about her own precious schoolbag.

Why exactly were the stairs creaking? Yui kept asking herself as she wobbled feebly up to the second floor, feeling every hair rise upward. They were _concrete_ stairs. They were supposed to be strong.

Exactly. Shimizu Keiichi was an XY chromosomal human. He was supposed to be able to take care of himself, and not freely allow an XX chromosomal human – especially one as cowardly as Nishihara Yui – to become his _escort_. Although Yui could've sworn that she saw an oily smirk on the corner of his mouth as he turned to go inside his own home, after thanking her for "her time" in his slow and vibrant voice.

Yui groaned and smacked her own forehead. She must be crazy. There was no way that _Shimizu Keiichi _could be up to something. Besides, why her mind jumped from creaking stairs to Shimizu Keiichi was seriously beyond her.

The door of the practice room was in sight, looking abnormally pale amidst the dim scatters of ivory moonlight. Yui strode unnaturally toward it, flinching every time the sound of her footstep resonated in the seemingly-dead hallway. As she reached for the door she raised her other hand to wipe away the cold sweat on her forehead – only to freeze in utter terror when she heard a dissonant tritone, coarse, savage-like, and menacing – coming from within.

She felt waves of blood pound at her eardrums, as Keiichi's words echoed repeatedly in her head,

"_There is a phantom that lurks in Seisou Academy at night. It can command all the instruments of the school to play at once as an ensemble. It is rumoured to play melodies that can lure an intruding student's soul into the depth of obscurity."_

She knew the melody well by heart. It was one that woke the dead, one that summoned skeletons from their graves to assemble for one chilling, gruesome dance.

* * *

_Camille Saint-Saë__ns, Danse Macabre_.

* * *

She trembled in apprehension when she heard the melody grow louder and louder, flutes with their trills, violins with their tremolos, cellos with their firm bass notes. She felt an urge to run back down the creaking stairs, but her limbs seemed to defy the commands of her brain, and she could not move. She could only shake helplessly as she heard footsteps approach the door from within. A gust of wind swept over, and the door slid gracefully and soundlessly aside. A pale figure loomed suddenly in front of Yui's rigid body, his face engulfed by the darkness as his emerald irises stared straight into her frightened eyes.

Yui felt her heart stop dead.

… _Brother?_

"_The phantom shapes itself as a person whom you most desire to see."_

At exactly that instant, the music hit a sforzando, and the violins and flutes and oboes and clarinets jumbled into one big pile of sound that gave Yui a screaming headache. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She only felt dizzier and dizzier, finally giving in as the world crumbled around her, and, before fading into the darkness, nothing remained but the pair of emerald eyes.

* * *

"Nishihara, wake up…"

Yui jerked suddenly awake and violently sat up, panting heavily at the memory of the eyes. She felt something like a school uniform slip off her chest. A hand grabbed at her shoulder, causing her to twitch and scream.

The hand retreated at her reaction, accompanied by a familiar voice that spoke slightly faster than usual, "Calm down, Nishihara, it's only me."

Yui heaved a sigh of relieve as she recognized the voice as Keiichi's, and turned to him with evident question on the face.

Keiichi did not wait for her question to come out. To Yui's amazement, he sounded somewhat embarrassed in his explanation,

"Something had bothered me when we were walking; I couldn't pinpoint what it was until long after I got home. You didn't have your backpack. And I know I've told you about the phantom, so I figured I'd - " his voice trailed off.

"Oh," was Yui's only response, but she could not hold back her smile. She wanted to add "So you _are_ humane after all", but despite his astonishing humaneness she was still not quite in the mood to jest.

Keiichi quickly diverted the topic, "But Nishihara, why did you faint when you saw me?"

"What?" Yui mumbled confusedly, "That was _you_?"

"… Um, yes?"

"How did you get the music - "

"I accidentally hit the play button on the CD player and I didn't know the speakers were connected, so I spent a while looking for the right plug to unplug - "

"… Couldn't you have turned down the _volume_ first?"

"I was going to do that, but then I heard somebody coming, so I figured I'd open the door first, but then you appeared and you just went out cold, so I was debating to myself whether to lay you down first or to turn down the volume and - "

Yui watched in amazement as Keiichi continued with the longest monologue that he has spoken yet, wearing a half-agitated look on his face. She felt a great urge to laugh, but when she recalled the emerald orbs which so resembled her brother's, her laugh choked into a bitter chuckle.

Keiichi cut his monologue short and inquired silently, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Yui answered quietly, "I… kind of wish I had seen the actual phantom."

Keiichi did not reply. Being the only one to know Nishihara Yui's secret in full, he understood only too well.

And yet again the cellist and the songstress submitted themselves to harmonized silence, except that this time, he did not have his instrument, and she felt least inclined to sing.

At length she whispered a feeble wish to go home, and he grabbed his uniform and pulled her up.

Suddenly, the loud notes of _Danse Macabre_ exploded from the speakers once more, nearly giving Yui a heart attack as she yelped and clung pathetically onto Keiichi's arm, "W-W-W-W-What's that?"

Keiichi's voice reverted to his ordinary slow and lazy one, "… I hit the play button again…"

"A-A-A-Are you s-s-sure? D-D-D-Didn't you turn down the v-v-volume?"

Keiichi reached slowly over to the stop button on the CD player and pressed it down. The music stopped. "… I guess not."

He turned to Yui, who was squinting at the CD player and still clinging pathetically onto his arm. He could not hold back his amused smile.

"… I'll walk you home."

Had Yui been in the mood, she would probably have exclaimed, _Alas, the turn of the universe has returned to normal and XY chromosomal beings are now escorting XX chromosomal beings home!_ But she was far too frightened to think much of it, and accepted this offer with immediate eagerness.

As for how the duo, while they were stepping out of the school gate, discovered that they had completely forgotten about Yui's backpack… well, that was another story.

* * *

_The accidental hitting of the play button is based on real-life experience -.-… my school music room has very, very, very loud speakers. End of story._

_To __thenolifequeen__: No, I haven't thought about actually creating the triangle yet, but there might be implications later on ;D._

_Leaving a __**review**__ would make my insides wiggle like beloved monkeys :D!_


	7. Barcarolle: The Beginning of Evolution

_Yes, this is back._

_I've fallen out of the Corda fandom a long time ago, and I've changed my pen-name and discontinued a few stories, but this is back._

_For the sake of the ever-so-lovely Shimizu Keiichi, and for the sake of the cello, which ought to be exposed more to the general public._

_It also feels really good to do some light, anime-style writing again, after all the other serious stories I've been working on._

_I'm very thankful for all the reviews I've gotten! You have no idea how much they meant to me. I won't be listing everyone this time, for there are so many of you :'D; but I want to let you all know that I thank you from the bottom of my heart, and I hope that the continuation won't disappoint you._

_Please review! And if you don't mind me giving a little advertisement to any of you who may be **Lord of the Rings** fans, I'm writing quite a large-scale project named **Chasing the Light**. If you're part of the LotR fandom, please go to my profile and give that a go, too :)!_

* * *

**Bass Clef VII – Barcarolle: The Beginning of Evolution**

"Yes, it is this closet. Thank you very much."

Yui wobbled out of the practice room in fatigue. As if she hadn't been busy enough setting the stage, managing the tickets, and coordinating the whole round of concours backstage, Kanayan had to give her the task of fixing the door of this closet too! Was calling for repair _that_ difficult for him? Yui was sure that Kanayan's perpetually bored look on his face in music classes today indicated that he wasn't very preoccupied with any other complex tasks.

And yet how intriguing was this round! Yui thought of the round of concours which had just passed, and, upon recalling a specific event that caught everybody's attention, scowled in annoyance. As if the jerks who locked Tsukimori-senpai in the closet gained much by doing that. They weren't even in the competition, and they were from the music department too!

"Oh well, jerks are jerks. All they've done really is to have given some of our Gen. Ed musical geniuses a chance to shine." Shrugging and deciding that it was useless to dwell, Yui said out loud in satisfaction, only to find multitudinous figures in white uniforms glaring at her with contempt and irritation.

Yui gulped. "Um, of course by jerks I don't mean any of _you_, hahaha…"

Of course, as true as such a statement may be, it would not give her the desired effect of pacification.

Yui awkwardly laughed some more, and began to tiptoe away from this gruelling atmosphere which she thought would engulf her. Several music students, however, would not let up. "Aren't you Nishihara, the first year who is so terrible in music class that Kanayan made you his slave as a punishment? As if a deficient Gen. Ed student such as you has a right to accuse us."

"Excusez-moi!" Yui paused her unnatural stride in mid-air, and angrily spun around, "I _may_ not be a musical genius, and I _may_ have been punished by Kanayan – but I am _also _a main coordinator of the concours about whom Kanayan has had nothing to complain so far! So if you gentlemen over here insist on acting in this manner like the jerks who locked Tsukimori-senpai in the closet, I _do_ actually have the right and power to inform Kanayan not to let you compete in the concours – ever."

She was satisfied with the gargled monkey looks on the offenders' faces, and happily turned around to continue her walk. Seisou, however, was a school full of jerks, and before long Yui found herself fuming again in attempt to defend one of her most interesting friends –

"Hey, you there, the first years tried their best! Stop addressing Shimizu in such a condescending tone! He can probably play better than you ever will."

The girl stomped forward and stopped beside Shimizu in front of the concours results board, scowling at the sneering music students with disapproval. Then, ignoring the hostile music students, she turned to Shimizu and addressed cheerfully, "Hey Shimizu, what d'you think of the results?"

Shimizu Keiichi, being Shimizu Keiichi, merely stared blankly at the results board without hearing his friend Nishihara Yui, or any of the sneering music students beside him, for that matter.

Yui sighed. After these two months of acquaintance, she was more than used to his irresponsiveness. In response to his irresponsiveness, then, she decided to stare, too, at the results board, which she put up herself.

The unfortunate Tsukimori-senpai was at the bottom of the list this time, where he certainly did not belong. On the other hand, Tsuchiura-senpai _did_ belong to the top of the list. Chopin's _Fantasie Impromptu_ was certainly one of the most challenging piano pieces Yui could think of, and as far as she could remember, Tsuchiura-senpai did the piece justice.

As her eyes floated onto her favourite senpai's name, a smile curled at the corner of her lips. Second place. She was proud of Kaho-senpai, and it wasn't only because she was able to attain second place.

There was a certain allure in Kaho-senpai's sound, one that she often did not catch in those of other music students'. There was emotion. There was sincerity. They were two of the greatest magic spells, that could transform even the most technically unchallenging melody into one full of heart and flavour. Yui once had them, too. She was in the process of searching for them back, and through Kaho-senpai's music, she felt even more hope that she would eventually retrieve them.

A light weight suddenly brushed against her shoulder, and she turned in surprise, only to find that Shimizu Keiichi had stumbled off in his reverie, bumping into her in the process without realizing it. Not knowing whether to chuckle or to sigh, Yui stepped eagerly after him to demand his attention, "_Shimizu_! Jeez, I do wonder where your brain goes sometime! I've been trying to talk to you for the past few minutes!"

The airhead finally realized her existence, and turned with a few blinks of sleepy eyes, before bowing in apologies, "Oh, Nishihara. Sorry."

"Don't worry, I'm used to it…" Yui remarked dryly, before her rigid expressions resolved to a smile. Yes, she was used to it. "I wanted to find you because I'll be getting another batch of payment at work today. Can you come by the flower shop some time before it closes at 9:30pm? I'll pay you another 30,000 yen. The rest will come in a few weeks."

Keiichi nodded airily, "I'll come by after I visit the library after school."

"Great! See you then," Yui grinned, before another thought caught her mind, "Oh God, I have to go and talk with Kanayan about that closet now. You know the address, right? Four blocks west of your apartment?"

Keiichi nodded several times in the same airy manner. Yui was anything but reassured, but as she was pressed for time, she let it slide this time, and waved goodbye to her cellist friend as she sprinted toward Kanazawa's office in haste.

* * *

"Good work, Yui. Don't know what I'd do without you around everyday."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Ling," Yui beamed sweetly at the elderly shop owner, and with a loud click she locked the door to the shop on the dimly lit street, "You have no idea how much I enjoy it here. See you tomorrow, Mr. Ling!"

Mr. Ling smiled and gave her a few pats on the shoulder, and began walking off into the distance.

Yui's smile receded as she watched him move further, and, turning to the locked door of the shop, she sighed and pulled at her pigtails in exasperation.

"Stupid, stupid Nishihara Yui! This is _Shimizu_ you're dealing with here! How can you expect him to remember the address without emphasizing it to him at least five times?"

It is not hard to guess, then, that her friend never showed up at the shop.

With another sigh full of fatigue, Yui began to make her way east to Keiichi's current residence, not without some worry that he might've been abducted by aliens while he was coming to the flower shop. His apartment was on her way home, and it wasn't that far of a walk from the shop anyway. In about fifteen minutes she arrived at her destination, and, a few seconds after she pressed the doorbell, Keiichi's aunt answered the door.

"Oh my, if it's not Nishihara-chan! What brings you here at such a time? It's very late."

As Yui had previously accompanied Keiichi home several times, she was no stranger to his aunt. To the countenance of this very amiable lady, Yui smiled in all friendliness, "Yes, I'm very sorry to disturb you, Aunt Shimizu. I just got off from work, and I have some payments to make to your nephew. To be honest, I want to get as much debt off my hands as soon as possible, and that's why I'm making a trip now. Is he at home?"

Keiichi's aunt laughed at her debt remark, and shook her head as she invited the young girl into the apartment, "Yes, he is at home, and I understand your mindset regarding the debt. You're not disturbing at all; I was only watching television dramas, and Keiichi is still practicing. But there must be something else you're not telling me. He was supposed to meet you somewhere at some time this evening, wasn't he?"

"Oh," Yui jilted in surprise, and chuckled in embarrassment, "Well, yes. How did you know?"

The lady couldn't help but roll her eyes a little, though her amiable smile returned quickly enough, "Oh, that airheaded boy! As to how I know, if you didn't have arrangements with him before, why would you ask me if he's home at this time of the day?"

"True, true," Yui laughed, and laid down her schoolbag at the corner of the lobby, "Well, he'll be unhappy about my ratting him out this way."

"By all means, if this ever happens again, tell auntie without a thought!" Aunt Shimizu exclaimed, as she led the girl into the living room and poured her a glass of orange juice, "I worry that he's too spoiled sometimes. And you spoil him too! You're always helping him out with the little things at school, and yet he seems so ungrateful! Come to the practice room with me, I'll _make_ him apologize for making you come all the way here."

Yui chuckled amusedly, "I don't _spoil _him at school, I do my _job_ at school, which is to keep all the concours contestants on their toes. But I certainly wouldn't mind an apology from him at this hour."

Keiichi's aunt smiled as they approached the practice room of the apartment, but as soon as she turned to the door she was wearing the scariest frown Yui had ever seen. With much strength she pounded on the door of the practice room, yelling amidst the loud sounds of knocking wood, "Keiichi! Get yourself out here! You have an explanation to give!"

No one responded. Yui winced as Aunt Shimizu knocked louder, seeming as if she were about to destroy the door. At last, a click from the doorknob sounded, and Keiichi appeared, rubbing his sleepy eyes and mumbling in his vibrant, slow voice, "Yes, aunt?"

"What do you mean 'Yes aunt'?" Aunt Shimizu sighed and rubbed her temples in weariness, and gestured to the songstress with a roll of her eyes, "Don't you feel like you've forgotten about something today?"

Keiichi slowly turned his head and, when he saw Yui dryly chuckling and waving hello at him, rubbed his eyes repeatedly in recollection. When his eyes finally seemed somewhat lucid again, he gave himself a little pat on the forehead and sighed at his own stupidity, "Oh, no. I must've fallen asleep hours ago."

"Why am I not surprised…" as Aunt Shimizu face-palmed, Yui mumbled to herself in a most manner-of-fact tone, but when Keiichi gave her a full bow she was a little startled, and when she heard his apologetic, melodic voice, all the dissatisfaction that had been in her then seemed to fade away,

"I'm very sorry about this, Nishihara."

Yui cast a glance at his aunt, and saw that she was smiling now, albeit still shaking her head in mild disapproval. With a sigh and a shrug, Yui's usual grin returned to her face, as she remarked with humour, "Well, one does not simply get angry at Shimizu Keiichi. Don't worry about it; I was half expecting it anyway."

She thought she saw a faint blush cross the cellist's cheeks, but credited that to her imagination.

"Well, I'll let you young people talk. The climax of the drama is coming up," Aunt Shimizu said, and began to make her way back into the living room, "Let me know if you need anything, Nishihara-chan my dear."

"Thank you, Aunt Shimizu." Yui nodded with a smile, and followed Keiichi into the practice room. She saw that one of his celli was in the case, and the other was lying sideways on the floor; the bow was sitting atop his music stand, and there was a book on his chair.

"So how in the world did you manage to fall asleep if you had been practicing?" She asked curiously, as Keiichi moved a second chair from the corner of the room to the centre and signalled her to sit. After a short pause, she added with a smirk, "Or maybe I shouldn't even be surprised about this? You're called 'sleeping beauty' for a reason, I suppose."

Keiichi cleared his throat, obviously still embarrassed by his blunder, "I wasn't playing. I was reading a book and thinking about something."

"Oh lord, Shimizu was _thinking_, possibly about something other than music. Not planning to dominate the world, I hope."

Keiichi couldn't help but give a small smile, "Fortunately for the world, no. It was only about music."

The duo sat down on the chairs, and Keiichi, tossing the book onto the ground, picked up his cello and positioned it. Yui fumbled through her pockets and fished out 30,000 yen, and put the bills on his stand.

"I'm surprised, though. I thought you always practiced in the afternoons. I can't even imagine you sitting in the practice room, reading a book, and _thinking_ instead of playing on your cello."

Keiichi stared wistfully into his music, and Yui, after waiting for a few minutes for him to respond, gave up and focussed on finishing her glass of juice instead. When she emptied it and saw that he still didn't seem to have the intention to respond, she stood up and said, "Well, my mission is accomplished, and I'd best get home now."

_Although my parents are on tour in Europe and no one else will be in that house for the next week_, she added grimly to herself, and turned to face the door. Keiichi's voice, however, stopped her motions.

"Hey, Nishihara… which was your favourite piece in the last round of concours?"

Yui blinked in surprise and turned back, tapping her chin in recollections, "My favourite piece? Do you mean the piece that I like the most or the piece that blew my mind the most?"

"The one that plays in your head the most," Keiichi replied, looking surprisingly curious.

"The one that plays in my head the most…" Yui mumbled and thought for a few moments, before a smile lit up her face, "Kreisler. Definitely Kreisler."

Keiichi mouthed an "O," and began staring at his music again, "That's interesting. You too?"

"What do you mean 'you too'? Kreisler's also your favourite?" Yui raised her eyebrows, genuinely amazed, "Wow, I'm surprised that you're not surprised at my revelation. Aren't you the one who focuses on technique?"

"Yes, and that's what I'm confused about," Keiichi muttered in evident bewilderment to himself, "In terms of technique, all other performances were much more stellar. But it's the Kreisler that plays in my head the most. Hino-senpai, I feel like her music is… sincere. But there must be more than that, don't you think? There must be more than that to make a piece so memorable."

Yui couldn't hold back a smile, as she sat down on her chair again and replied, "I'm amazed and amused. Aren't you the one who told me to sing if I want to? It's the same with instruments, you know."

"Yes, I told you to just sing if you enjoy it. But I didn't tell you the secret to singing well, or playing any instrument well. Maybe it's because I don't know it. I've always thought technique alone will be enough. If there's sufficient technique, the music will improve with it." Keiichi scratched the back of his head with a small scowl, clearly still confounded.

Yui's smile widened, as she rested her elbows on her knees and her chin on her hands, watching him trying to sort out his puzzlement. After a short pause, she said, "Do you know, Shimizu, that your thought process is actually quite perplexing? It's simple, really. How can you truly excel in something, if the basic enjoyment isn't there? Technique is important, sincerity is important, but heart is more important, you know. And imagination. Imagination must always be there, because it is a key to enjoyment. Imagination is the wild colours in the palette; it is what makes even the simplest piece of art stand out. Imagination is the way to the heart."

"Imagination?" Keiichi reiterated and tilted his head in wonder, "I often don't have room for it when I play. There're too many markings on the score I must pay attention to."

"Isn't that what practice is for, though?" Yui chuckled and pointed out, as she moved toward the music stand and begin fishing through Keiichi's folder, "You familiarize yourself with the markings during practice, and when you perform, you let imagination shine. I'll show you what I mean. Hmm, where's a good piece? Nope, nope… ah, here."

She pulled out a sheet with a grin, and Keiichi squinted at it in curiosity. When he saw the title, however, he couldn't conceal his disappointment, "Barcarolle? But I've known how to play that for years."

"Exactly," Yui nodded in approval, "You must have it memorized by now, right?"

"Of course."

"Good. Come on, come on, play it to me."

With a raised eyebrow Keiichi picked up his bow and began to play the piece. Barely three bars have passed, however, before Yui cut him off with some impatience, "Stop, stop, stop. Okay, that's perfect. You know just where the slurs are, and just where the crescendos and decrescendos go. But I don't _feel_ anything, you know. Whenever I think of this piece, I always think of Venice and gondolas. Can you make me think of them with your playing, Shimizu?"

Keiichi held his bow in the air and looked at her with uncertainty, and, seeing his confusion, Yui chuckled and added, "You have to close your eyes and picture that _you're_ on a gondola in Venice, you know. You can even sway to the rhythm and pretend that you're swaying on one. That's how you can make me and others feel it too, you know."

Keiichi glanced at his music again, and when a smile crept onto his face, Yui knew that he had understood.

When the bow of the cellist slid onto the strings again, the cellist and the songstress simultaneously let their eyelids drop. The practice room was no longer a practice room; it was the flowing waters of the canals of Venice, it was the small wooden interior of a wooden gondola. With the gradual increase in the dynamics of the phrases the duo felt themselves float, sway into the distance; they felt themselves refreshed by the waters, amazed by the scenery, caressed by the winds. As the songstress joined to harmonize with her own melodic hum, there was no more confusion, no more question, no more reality – there were only music, imagination, and peace, and within those three core elements of the heart, the cellist and the songstress soared.

* * *

_Jacques Offenbach, Barcarolle._

* * *

At last, his bow slid gracefully off of his string. Keiichi turned with a smile to his friend to voice his comment, but he saw that she was already sound asleep on her chair, with a tiny smile of bliss still hanging on the corners of her lips.

He realized that he was so engrossed in his mental images, that he did not even notice when her voice had ceased.

He reached out a hand to wake her, but, recalling that she has had a long day, withdrew his hand. Instead, he positioned his bow again, and, with a smile full of blithe and peace, began to replay the Barcarolle.

Tonight there was no practice room, no rigorous technique, no rules to restrict his playing. There were only blue waters, clear skies, everlasting serenity, and a songstress as his company. And Shimizu Keiichi rather enjoyed it that way.

* * *

_Leaving a **review** and letting me know what you think will really make my day :)! Constructive criticism is always warmly welcomed._


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